The US Navy courts-martial of the officers of the USS Fitzgerald have begun. The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer collided with the Philippine-flagged container ship, ACX Crystal near Yokosuka, Japan on June 17, 2017, killing 9 US sailors. A Navy investigation concluded that the collision was caused by ineffective watchstanding and failure of the bridge crew to respond in a timely manner and change course to avoid the collision.
Yesterday, Lt. j.g. Sarah Coppock, the junior officer responsible for navigation at the time of the collision, pleaded guilty to the charge of dereliction of duty. According to a Navy statement, she received a punitive letter and will forfeit half a month’s pay for three months as part of her sentence.
Lt. Coppock is the first of a series of hearings. Military Times reports that two more junior officers will appear at an Article 32 hearing today. An Article 23 hearing determines whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed with a full court-martial. Cmdr. Bryce Benson, the former commanding officer of the Fitzgerald is scheduled to appear at an Article 32 investigative hearing May 21.
In February, former Fitzgerald executive officer Cmdr. Sean Babbitt and former command master chief Brice Baldwin were found guilty at non-judicial punishment proceedings for dereliction of duty and were given punitive letters of reprimand.
One other officer also received a reprimand, and another had a finding of guilt set aside. Another officer and an enlisted sailor from the Fitzgerald had charges dismissed.
Yeah. That ‘s right. Throw the junior officer under the bus. There is only one person responsible for the collision. They call it CAPTAIN. That is why you pick your crew. If there isn’t a GENERAL COURT convened the Navy is doing the usual bullshit and picking on the monkey whilst the organ grinder gets a slap on the wrist. I was a Lt(jg) on an aircraft carrier and responsible for the most sensitive top secret documents. If I had screwed up, my skipper never would have made Admiral. In fact he would probably have been forced to retire. The Navy is now mirroring the nonsense that goes on in Washington with elected politicians and that is a pity.
The senior officers are being brought up on much more serious charges.