Despite the ominous sounding name of "special", this is actually good news for the young sailor. A general court-martial is far more severe in nature. Still, he faces a year in jail and loss of benefits, etc.
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SAN DIEGO - A Navy sailor who refused to board a Persian Gulf-bound ship because of his opposition to the war in the Iraq will face a special court-martial — the military equivalent of a civilian misdemeanor trial, the Navy announced Friday.
The Navy said it has referred criminal charges of absence without leave and missing the movement of a ship against Petty Officer 3rd Class Pablo Paredes, 23....
Paredes, of New York City, has applied for contentious objector status, and a decision is expected next week, Warren said. A Navy chaplain who met with Paredes in January wrote it was "morally imperative" his request be granted, Warren said.
Paredes, a weapons-control technician who joined the Navy in 2000, refused to board the USS Bonhomme Richard on Dec. 6 as it left for a six-month tour in the Pacific and Indian oceans.
He has said he was young and naive when he joined the Navy and that he "never imagined in a million years we would go to war with somebody who had done nothing to us." http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050326/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/iraq_sailor_s_protest
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