The Marshall Project

In Military Prison I Learned The True Meaning of Service

It took me more than 20 years to become a lieutenant colonel. Then I was sent to Leavenworth.

Before I drove into Fort Leavenworth, I was a lieutenant colonel in the Army. And within minutes, that would all be taken away from me.

In 2012, I was sentenced to serve a year at Leavenworth—the nation’s main military prison for those who serve in the Armed Forces—for exposing a first lieutenant to HIV. I’d been HIV positive for several years, with my viral load suppressed to the point where it was impossible to transmit the virus. Despite that, and other evidence in my favor, I was still charged with felony assault, willful disobedience,

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