Even though Fort Hood is now Fort Cavazos, their old message of sweeping things under the rug and allowing higher-ups to simply walk away is continuing. The toxic and, at times, deadly command environment that engulfed the base over the last 20 years has not changed, but at least now liberal’s feelings aren’t hurt anymore.
At the center of that theory is COL John Meredith. Unceremoniously fired from his position as commander of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, in October 2022, he was accused of forcibly touching and kissing the wife of an officer under his command.
Brian Harris, a III Corps spokesperson, provided Military.com with a statement about the situation. “Based on newly discovered evidence, the III Armored Corps commanding general withdrew and dismissed the criminal charges against Col. Jon Meredith. The newly discovered evidence was unrelated to the question of whether Col. Meredith engaged in conduct unbecoming an officer. While Col. Meredith will no longer face a court-martial for conduct unbecoming an officer, there is still sufficient evidence to support the commanding general taking appropriate administrative action on the misconduct.”
Except, back in September 2023, LTG Sean Bernabe dropped the abusive sexual conduct charge against Meredith. Then on October 13th, the final criminal charge of conduct unbecoming an officer was dropped as well. According to text messages between the accuser and her husband, the relationship was consensual. According to Meredith’s attorney, Sherilyn Bunn, Meredith could make the situation volatile if he didn’t get the rating he wanted.
The twist in this story is that COL Ann Meredith was fired from her post as the 89th Military Police Brigade commander, also at Fort Cavazos. receiving a GOMOR and facing accusations of interfering in her husband’s investigation, it’s unclear if she’ll skate Scott free since her husband was let go.
Action like this would never be let go on the lower enlisted level. At a minimum COL Meredith would be facing an adultery charge for his involvement with someone other than his wife. Given the forcible sexual contact charges, even if proven to be consensual, he would still be made to face trial and not have the charges dropped if enlisted.
Given the wide range of changes the US Army has undergone in just the last 20 years, one thing has remained consistent- the ass-kissing of officers. Those who can knock a Mason’s ring on the door or who have achieved MAJ or above will always walk away from whatever trouble they get into. Even if forced to retire, they’ll still keep their pensions, and they will retire at their highest grade.
Senior NCOs at MSG or above will also often get this same treatment; however, more often than not, they are shuffled to a new unit and simply allowed to retire in six months. These “no-show” positions are rarely filled and barely acknowledged on a unit manning report. Assigned to a unit but listed someplace else, they are just biding their time and allowed to simply fade out.
This isn’t right, and this isn’t what the military is about. Dismissing charges like these and not giving him and his wife the boot for their actions is appalling. As officers, they are paid significantly more than enlisted servicemembers. They are treated with much more respect, and they are often heralded as the epitome of what a soldier should be. Holding them to a higher standard should simply go with that.
If they want to send the right signal about caring about sexual misconduct, adultery, and abuse of rank, then they will push to have him removed and not given his benefits. If his wife interfered in the investigation, she would suffer the same fate and the same loss of benefits. Keeping them in line shouldn’t be that difficult, and refusing to do so only creates more distrust and conflict between the ranks.
