Lawrence J Franks Jr - Lawrence Joseph Franks Jr. graduated from the US Military Academy on May 31, 2008. Within a year he had left the army and was fighting Islamist militants with the French in North Africa.
The Damascus native, who retired from the army to fight for France, plans to challenge his conviction at a court-martial, arguing the judge prevented the jury from hearing evidence of his lingering depression and outstanding service record.
Lawrence J Franks Jr
Lt. Laurence Franks Jr. will argue that he acted to save his life in early 2009 when he fled his upstate New York post to Paris and joined the French Foreign Legion to escape suicidal thoughts.
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On December 15, a jury sentenced Franks to four years in prison. He was transferred to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas last week to serve his sentence.
The petitions will show whether the military's justice system is willing to tolerate some wrongdoing by soldiers with mental health problems, legal experts say — a decision that must balance the need to reduce suicides with maintaining order in the ranks.
"In retrospect, it's very unusual," said Jeffrey Korn, a retired Army lieutenant colonel and public defender who now teaches at South Texas Law School in Houston. He said there was a chance Franks' sentence would be reduced if he was permanently dismissed from the military, which is tantamount to a dishonorable officer discharge.
But Korn warned: "It's a dangerous precedent to start suggesting that a soldier should be pardoned as long as he does some good after his retirement."
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The military judge who presided over Franks' recent trial at Fort Drum, New York, did not allow him to use depression as a defense, deeming it irrelevant. Information, including testimony from military psychologists, was only released during the sentencing hearing.
According to coverage of the trial in the New York Times, Franks said he wanted to do strenuous physical labor to distract himself from suicidal urges.
"He should have been welcomed as a member of the United States Army family," Franks' attorney, Louis Fond, said in an interview. "Whether the military is doing something — or wanting to do something — about suicide in the ranks is a very serious case."
According to the procedure, Franks' case will be reviewed by a brigadier general and then appealed to the United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals in Washington, DC, and then to the United States Supreme Court of the Armed Forces. The revision could lead to a reduction in his sentence or a total quashing of the conviction.
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"The mental illness part of it is very important to me," said Portland attorney Steve Goldberg, who represented Army Sgt. In the 2005 case Emiliano Santiago published against then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. "If you really want to think about what's fair, I think this should be part of it."
Franks' supporters questioned the severity of the sentence, as he had acted honorably as a member of the army and had voluntarily returned to the army. He spent nearly five years with the Legion in Africa, eventually becoming the personal security guard of a French Brigadier General. General Laurent Kolodzij, who led the efforts to combat Islamic extremists there.
Five French officers—a general, an admiral, and three colonels—wrote him letters of thanks describing his crucial role in the African missions.
Franks caught the attention of his superiors by "far surpassing" the other cadets in his platoon during medical training, Col. Hervé Willard wrote in February 2011.
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French officers knew him as a soldier. Christopher Flaherty - A pseudonym given to all cadets of the Legion. According to the letters, he earned accolades for caring for residents of the Central African Republic and coordinating security details for French government and military personnel in Mali, working as a medic and assistant to anti-tank missile gunners.
General Bernard Cummins, the commanding officer of the French forces in Gabon, wrote, "Knowing the importance of his mission, he threw himself fully into his duties and soon won the full confidence of his supervisors."
In 2011, he spent Christmas in Djibouti, organizing hometown visits for locals. At one point, he used his training as a doctor to help a sick 7-year-old girl.
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Joint Task Force Abroad. "By his character, professional qualities and conduct he brought credit to his regiment and deserves special commendation."
On June 2, 2013, Franks acted as a security guard for a foreign delegation traveling to Gao, a city in southern Mali on the Niger River. When some officers began to ignore security protocol, he quickly and discreetly sent them to a safer location, one of the letters says.
On June 29 of that year, Franks led a high-ranking colonel through hostile territory outside the city where troops were pursuing groups of rebels. The letter says he provided security in the weeks following meetings between French and Malian officials ahead of the country's presidential election.
French Admiral Edouard Gillard writes a letter of appreciation to Second Lieutenant Laurence Franks Jr. for his service in the French Foreign Legion. After leaving the US Army in 2009, Franks helped fight Islamist militants in North Africa.
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Admiral Edward Gillard, then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, wrote in a satisfactory affidavit: "He displayed great composure and determination which enabled the officer to carry out his duty."
Franks' father, Larry Franks Sr., said he still hopes his son will be allowed to return to ministry and fulfill a dream he's had since he was in eighth grade at Damascus Christian School.
"It would have been a win for everyone. The Army retains a good officer and soldier and my son should be back," he said. "Now that he's been in jail for four years, the Army is losing a good soldier."
It will take several months for his case to be brought before a dean, and up to two years for the appeals courts to review it. As of Tuesday, more than 1,000 people had signed an online petition asking President Barack Obama to pardon Franks.
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Fort Drum officials did not comment on the verdict, except to say that the court-martial included eight officers of higher rank than Franks, according to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Official documents are yet to come out.
"The Court of Appeals will take final action on the case," Deputy Public Affairs Officer Maj. Josh Jack said in an email. "The appellate court can act only on the results of the conviction and sentence."
A French letter of appreciation, written by Colonel Eric Oussanne, concluded with a generous assessment: "He would have brought honor to the foreign army and to his country of origin."
"West Point officers usually don't quit," said Korn, a former judge and attorney general. "It's not about what the crime is, it's who I think committed it."
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If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Lawrence Joseph Franks Jr. graduated from the United States Military Academy on May 31, 2008. Within a year, he was in North Africa fighting Islamist militants with the French. A military judge sentenced him to four years in prison on Monday.
A man from Damascus was sentenced Monday to four years in prison for deserting the U.S. military to fight Islamist militants on behalf of the French in North Africa, according to the New York Times.
According to the Times report, Second Lieutenant Lawrence J. The plane went to France and joined the French Foreign Legion under an assumed name.
He told the newspaper that the reason was severe depression and suicidal thoughts, which made living with the US military unbearable.
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He once completed peacekeeping tours in the Central African Republic and Djibouti with the Legion, a branch of the French military that accepts anyone regardless of nationality.
Soon after, he was promoted to personal security guard for French Brigadier General Laurent Kolodzig, accompanying him to Mali in 2013 to fight Islamist militants who had taken over the country's north.
"He is a man I will never forget and I will always stand by him," Koludzij said in a video testimony from Paris. "He is more than a born soldier, he is a gentleman. I wish I had 10 such men in my team, and I would be the happiest of generals."
After his five-year contract expired, Franks joined the U.S. Army in Germany last March, according to the Times.
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