More convicted felons allowed to enlist in Army, Marines

More convicted felons allowed to enlist in Army, Marines

AP foreign, Monday April 21 2008

By LOLITA C. BALDOR

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Under pressure to meet combat needs, the
Army and Marine Corps brought in significantly more recruits
with felony convictions last year than in 2006, including some
with manslaughter and sex crime convictions.

Data released by a congressional committee shows the number
of soldiers admitted to the Army with felony records jumped
from 249 in 2006 to 511 in 2007. And the number of Marines
with felonies rose from 208 to 350.

Those numbers represent a fraction of the more than 180,000
recruits brought in by the active duty Army, Navy, Air Force
and Marines during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2007. But
they highlight a trend that has raised concerns both within
the military and on Capitol Hill.

The bulk of the crimes involved were burglaries, other thefts,
and drug offenses, but nine involved sex crimes and six involved
manslaughter or vehicular homicide convictions. Several dozen
Army and Marine recruits had aggravated assault or robbery
convictions, including incidents involving weapons.

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