ST. LOUIS (AP) --—
An Army sergeant who had refused deployment to Iraq said a board recommended he receive a "general discharge under honorable conditions." Matthis Chiroux, now of Brooklyn, N.Y., but originally from Auburn, Ala., had an administrative hearing Tuesday in suburban St. Louis. The 25-year-old reservist has been in the military since 2002, but believes the war in Iraq is wrong and that U.S. authority there is illegitimate. He says his lawyer considers the hearing's outcome a victory.Army Lt. Col. Maria Quon said she couldn't release the board's recommendation due to privacy rules. However, she said its findings are not the final word. That decision rests with Maj. Gen. Sean Byrne, who oversees the Army's Human Resources Command. She said it could take weeks for that determination.
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Chiroux, 25, refused deployment to Iraq last year faced a military hearing on Tuesday. He was not facing a court-martial, but the hearing at the Army Human Resources Command in St. Louis was to determine whether he should get an honorable discharge from the military. Quon said early Monday that a dishonorable discharge was not being considered, but Chiroux could get a general discharge or an other-than-honorable discharge, either of which could result in fewer benefits after he leaves the military.
Anti-war protesters held a rally in support of Chiroux outside the hearing, which was not open to the public.
Chiroux is an Individual Ready Reservist who was informed last year he was being sent to Iraq. He refused to report.
