Erik Larsen, Tahan Jones fight railroading by Marine Corps

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Erik Larsen speaking at Sept. 14, 1990, Berkeley teach-in on the Gulf war.

Marine Corps antiwar activist/conscientious objector Erik Larsen and his attorney, Robert Rivkin, discussed the plight of Gl Gulf War resisters with Socialist Action during a June 22 interview at Rivkin's office in San Francisco.

Larsen had retured briefly to San Francisco on June 20 for a court-ordered rehearing of his previously denied application for Conscientious Objector status. He still faces a court martial trial in Camp Le Jeune, N.C., for "desertion in time of war," a charge which potentially carries the death penalty.

Larsen and his friend, Tahan Jones, are the only Marines to be charged with this offense. A third Marine, Kevin Sparrock, who was previously in this category, has been sentenced to six months in military prison. The desertion charges against him were only dropped in the course of a negotiated settlement.

Sparrock, who was reportedly eight hours late following the activation of his unit to Saudi Arabia, agreed to forego his right to a trial in exchange for a guilty plea to the lesser charges of "missing a troop, movement" and "absence without leave.' Like many of the Marines awaiting trial at Camp Le Jeune, Sparrock felt compelled to negotiate his democratic rights to avoid the extreme punishment threatened by a military establishment-currently intoxicated with its victorious slaughter of the virtually defenseless Iraqi people.

"Kuwaiti-style justice"

Larsen's attorney has been defending GI rights since the Vietnam War. He described to Socialist Action what his client and all other GIs who resisted the U.S.-led war Gulf war face today: "They [the U.S. military] don't seem to care about the niceties of constitutional rights or any other rights. They seem to be concerned about meeting their agenda-isolation, intimidation, and incarceration—and doing it as soon as possible. It's a pure power play. I've called it Kuwaiti-style justice."

The string of Marine Corps violations of Larsen's rights, according to Rivkin, include holding Larsen's Article 32 (preliminary) hearing, on June 4, without the presence of his civilian attorney. Larsen was also denied the right to present any of the 38 witnesses prepared to testify on his behalf.

"It's their game, and you play it on their court and there's no one around to enforce their own rules," Rivkin explained. "The only court we can appeal to right now is the court of public opinion." Rivkin has called for a congressional investigation into the railroading of antiwar GIs.

Following Larsen's charade-like Article The witness initially claimed that last August, during a Marine drill, Larsen told him that he was applying for CO status to avoid going to war. In fact, the record indicated that there was no such drill in August.

When the witness changed his story to put Larsen's statement in September at another drill period, the record showed that Larsen was not present at this event as well, and in fact, had already publicly announced his CO stand.

To deny Larsen's application, the Marine Corps has only to find that there is a "basis in fact" for the decision.

Civilian military attorney John Murcko, who represents Tahan Jones, told Socialist Action that the "basis in fact" criteria "is an extremely limited standard of proof which allows for great discretion in the military."

Murko explained that during the Vietnam War, in spite of this standard, some 90 percent of the CO applications he was familiar with were approved. Of the 28 Gl resisters originally confined to Camp LeJeune, however, not one has been granted CO status. All have received prison sentences based on conviction after trial or plea-bargaining.

Larsen was singled out The original denial of CO status to Larsen was based on a non-proven assertion that his objection to war was solely "political," as opposed to the narrow legal criteria of sincere opposition to all war based on religious, ethical, and moral grounds.

But Larsen explained: "A person can be ethically, morally, and religiously opposed to war and be a sincere Conscientious Objector and still be a vocal critic of government policies or government in general." It was this vocal criticism— including hundreds of speeches in 14 states and three foreign countries—which led the Marines to single out Larsen for special persecution.

Larsen's CO views crystalized during a special training period at Dugway, Utah, where the Marines have been testing biological, chemical and nuclear weapons for the past 50 years.

"We were told not to go outside a certain area," Larsen told us. "There were unexploded devices. They told us don't dig in the soil because you might come across a biological or chemical pocket that's been left over since the '60s. Always wear your gas mask.

"So one day, these two Marines came across something-or maybe they had heat exhaustion. It was treated as if it were a chemical incident. Three hundred Marines had to go up a hillside and don our gas masks. It was pretty scary to be fearful of something you can't see.

"I began questioning a lot about weapons of mass destruction. They don't know friend or foe. Their targets could be anyone, civilian or military. ... That was pretty much the last straw. ... I didn't want to prepare any more for going to war. I didn't want to prepare any more for supporting our policies—which would be killing thousands of people, tens of thousands of people."

Rivkin expects the hearing officer to release his recommendation within the next few weeks. If Larsen receives a favorable recommendation and if it is approved by the military tops, the Marines will be hard-pressed from a political and legal standpoint, to proceed with a court martial.

Larsen argues that he would not have been activated if his CO application was handled fairly. A San Francisco federal court judge has, in fact, ruled that the Marines denied Larsen a fair hearing when they ruled against his original CO application in November.

But a letter to the Larsen family from an authorized spokesperson from the Marine commandant's office, indicates that the Marines care little about formalities. They assert that Larsen was still under Marine jurisdiction when they ordered his unit activated.

The legal cards are no doubt stacked against Erik Larsen, Tahan Jones, and all other Marines who said "No" to the Gulf War slaughter. The antiwar movement has a special responsibility to come to their aid.

On June 22, more than 200 activists and supporters attended a Berkeley, Calif., rally/birthday party for 24-year old Larsen. Larsen and Jones family representatives proudly supported their son's courageous fight in the face of difficult odds. Over $2000 was raised at the event. An estimated $60,000 will be required in the months to come.

Contributions and other support are urgently needed. Checks and communications can be sent to The Tahan Jones/Erik Larsen Defense Fund, Box 225, 1678 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley, CA. 94709. Phone (415) 655-1201.

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Josoph Ryan/Socialist Actios Action