Army Recruiter Threatens High School Student with Jail Time

Amy Goodman: As the wars drag on in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. military is increasingly desperate to get recruits. A story involving an Army recruiter in Texas last week has now led to a bipartisan call for an investigation.

The recruiter from the Greenspoint Recruiting Station in Houston was suspended last week after a recording of his threats aired on a local CBS affiliate, KHOU. The recruiter, Sergeant Glenn Marquette, warned 18-year-old Irving Gonzalez that he would be sent to jail if he decided to go to college instead of joining the military, even though Gonzalez had signed a non-binding contract that left him free to change his mind before basic training.

Republican Congress member Ted Poe told the CBS affiliate that "We don't want the government, military, the Army, deceiving American citizens" and suggested that Congress might have to get involved if the Army did not react to the incident.

Last year, Irving Gonzalez and Eric Martinez signed up for the non-binding delayed enlistment program in high school. But earlier this summer, when 17-year-old Eric Martinez told his recruiters he had decided to go to college instead of the military, his mother was told Eric had no choice and could face jail time if he resisted joining. Irving Gonzalez helped get Eric out of enlistment hours before he was to be shipped out of Houston for training. He knew he was next in line. He decided to record his next conversation with his recruiters. This is a part of what Sergeant Marquette told Irving Gonzalez in that recorded conversation.

Irving Gonzalez: The main thing is, I want out. I don't want to be in it. I don't want to go to the Army.

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: Well, you need to talk to my company commander.

Irving Gonzalez: To your company commander?

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: Mm-hmm. You need to come in here, and I need to bring you to my company commander.

Irving Gonzalez: But is there a way out? Is there a way for me to get out, because I don't want to go in there if you are just going to like…

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: No, there is not a way out. You signed a binding contract.

Irving Gonzalez: There's no way out?

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: No. When you sign a contract…

Irving Gonzalez: But I'd probably be able to get scholarships.

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: You need a full ride scholarship, full ride, to a state university -- UT, AM. Full ride. That means everything is paid for -- classes, books, you know, lodging, you know, breakfast, lunch and dinner -- all paid for, not no partial scholarship, not no FAA scholarship, not no First Citizen Bank scholarship. No, we're talking full ride scholarship, because there ain't no partial scholarship out there that even comes close to what the Army's giving you for college. It's forty-plus thousand dollars.

Irving Gonzalez: Yeah, I know, but, I mean, it's kind of like a family thing, too. I'd rather just stay here. What if I just don't show up?

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: Then, guess what. You're AWOL, absent without leave, punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 86: Deserter. It's in your contract. Read it. It's clear as day. So then, guess what happens.

Irving Gonzalez: What's that?

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: Guess what happens to you, I'll tell you what happens to you, OK? This is what will happen. You want to go to school? You will not get no loans, because all college loans are federal and government loans. So you'll be black-marked from that. As soon as you get pulled over for a speeding ticket or anything with the law, they're gonna see that you're a deserter. Then they're going to apprehend you, take you to jail. They're going to call up the military police, the nearest military installation, and they will come down there, correctional officers, 31-series in the Army, pick you up, detain you, put you on a plane and take you to Fort [inaudible], Missouri, where you will do your time, as you deserve. So guess what. All that lovey-dovey "I want to go to college" and all this? Guess what. You just threw it out the window, because you just screwed your life. There's a right way to do things, and there's a wrong way to do things.

Irving Gonzalez: OK. Well, I mean, [inaudible] --

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: If you get into basic training and you don't like it, tell the chaplain you don't like it. That's the right way to get out of the Army. Then they'll process you out of the Army, and they'll tell you to adapt, and there's nothing against your record.

Irving Gonzalez: That would be the right way to do it?

Sgt. Glenn Marquette: Yeah, and you can come back home and do your thing. And then, also, guess what. If you do it that way, if you do it that way, maybe they'll even want you in the future. You may say, "Well, damn, I'm coming to join the Army this time." Then, guess what. You can. You can join then, because you got out of the Army the right way. You at least got to go to basic training and try it.

Amy Goodman: U.S. Army recruiter Sergeant Glenn Marquette, threatening 18-year-old Irving Gonzalez. Gonzalez and Eric Martinez now are joining us from Houston, Texas. We're also joined in Houston by Democratic Congress member Gene Green, who is calling on the Department of Defense to look into the incident, and by community organizer Maureen Haver. She is the founder of Not Even One, a website to disseminate information and take action against illegal military recruiting practices. Douglas Smith is also on the phone with us. He’s the public affairs officer at the U.S. Military Recruiting Command, joining us on the phone from Louisville, Kentucky.