Bowe Bergdahl Not a Deserter ? Eddie Slovik only soldiers shot for desertion since Civil War

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• published: 08 Jun 2014
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I have not taken a stand on this matter suffice it to say I lost many friends in Vietnam - The problem I see with the Bergdahl case is: as many as 8 soldiers were killed during the search for Sgt Bergdahl Jan 31st 1945: Private Eddie Slovik, born 1920 in Detroit Michigan is the last American shot for desertion. Is Bowe Bergdahl Next 6 of his brother soldiers were killed in the search for him after he went missing On January 31, 1945, Private Edward Donald "Eddie" Slovik became a curious statistic of World War II: he was executed by a Military Firing squad for desertion. He is the only person to have been so punished for that crime since the Civil War.A movie was made about this event Will Bowe Bergdahl be Next ? Once again there will be many who think Bowe Bergdahl Should be shot I think it enough to convict him, sentence him to death IF he is found to have done the things now being disclosed, then suspend that sentence BUT strip him of his military benefits and social security pittance and and order him to live in the U.S. and NOT change his name OR THE ORIGINAL sentence will be enforced. The Execution of Eddie Slovik The execution by firing squad was carried out at 10:04 a.m. on 31 January 1945, near the village of Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines. The unrepentant Slovik said to the soldiers whose duty it was to prepare him for the firing squad before they led him to the place of execution, "They're not shooting me for deserting the United States Army, thousands of guys have done that. They just need to make an example out of somebody and I'm it because I'm an ex-con. I used to steal things when I was a kid, and that's what they are shooting me for. They're shooting me for the bread and chewing gum I stole when I was 12 years old." Slovik, wearing a uniform stripped of all insignia with a GI blanket across his shoulders against the cold, was led into the courtyard of a house chosen for the execution because it had a high masonry wall. The commanders did not want the local French civilians to witness the proceedings. Soldiers stood him against a six inch by six inch post. The soldiers strapped him to the post using web belts. One went around and under his arms and hung on a spike on the back side of the post to prevent his body from slumping following the volley. The others went around his knees and ankles. Just before a soldier placed a black hood over his head, the attending chaplain said to Slovik, "Eddie, when you get up there, say a little prayer for me." Slovik answered, "Okay, Father. I'll pray that you don't follow me too soon." Those were his last words. Twelve picked soldiers were detailed for the firing squad from the 109th Regiment. The weapons used were standard issue M-1 rifles with just one bullet for each rifle. One rifle was loaded with a blank. On the command of "Fire", Slovik was hit by eleven bullets, at least four of them being fatal. The wounds ranged from high in the neck region out to the left shoulder, over the left chest, and under the heart. One bullet was in the left upper arm. An Army physician quickly determined Slovik had not been immediately killed. The firing squad's rifles were reloaded in preparation for another volley. But before the reloading of the rifles was complete, Private Slovik died. He was 24 years of age. The whole process took 15 minutes. The military service record of Eddie Slovik, which is now a public archival record available from the Military Personnel Records Center, provides a detailed account of the actual execution of Slovik which took place in 1945 and it was upon this that most of the film The Execution of Private Slovik was based. Some dramatic license occurs, including during the execution. There is no evidence, for example, that the priest attending Slovik's execution shouted "Give it another volley if you like it so much" after the doctor indicated Slovik was still alive.[citation needed] Burial[edit] Slovik was buried in Plot "E" of Oise-Aisne American Cemetery and Memorial in Fère-en-Tardenois, alongside 95 American soldiers executed for rape and/or murder. Their grave markers are hidden from view by shrubbery and bear sequential numbers instead of names, making it impossible to identify them individually without knowing the key. Antoinette Slovik unsuccessfully petitioned the Army for her husband's remains and his pension until her death in 1979. Slovik's case was taken up in 1981 by former Macomb County Commissioner Bernard V. Calka, a Polish-American World War II veteran, who continued to petition the Army to return Slovik's remains to the USA. In 1987, he succeeded in convincing President Ronald Reagan to order their return.[10] Calka raised $8,000 to pay for the exhumation of Slovik's remains from Row 3, Grave 65 and their transfer to Detroit's Woodmere Cemetery, where Slovik was reburied next to his wife. Although Antoinette Slovik and others petitioned seven U.S. presidents for a pardon, none was granted.