You’ve likely heard the sound bites and watched the videos before.
More than once, Donald Trump has suggested or implied that Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl should be executed for leaving his base in Afghanistan. Now, Bergdahl’s attorneys want to interview Trump, which could lead to him being deposed in the Army sergeant’s court martial.
Bergdahl faces charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy - charges that could come with lifetime prison sentences.
To retired Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel JamesWeirick, the request from Bergdahl’s legal team is no surprise. Weirick was a military attorney, and says if Trump becomes president before Bergdahl’s court martial ends, something called “unlawful command influence” could come into play. He says that's when a military jury is swayed because a commanding officer or someone in the executive branch expresses their opinion about a case.
“That could be problematic because of those statements," says Weirick. "To be honest with you, this is really just very premature, but that being said lawyers do that all the time.”
Weirick says right now the issue of Trump's possible deposition is not as big of a deal as the Internet is making it out to be.
Find Frankie Barnhill on Twitter @FABarnhill
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