Adultery In The Military: A Case Study

There is no secret that committing adultery as a member of the military carries a harsher punishment than any other career choice or lifestyle. Our own former President of the United States committed adultery. President Clinton was caught committing adultery with a White House intern. During the scandal the House of Representative tried to impeach President Clinton; however, the Senate failed to eject Clinton (Nelson, 2013). This case was very controversial because supporters believed President Clinton 's personal life was not a public issue (Nelson, 2013). I do not understand how the President of the United States, who is the Commander in Chief, receives a slap on the wrist, while people like Karen Tew an Air force Colonel lost her life. In March 1997, Tew committed suicide after being sentenced to dismissal from the service and loss of benefits (Hafemeister, 1997). After nineteen years in the service as an Air Force Officer, Tew 's career and her life was over within a matter of weeks. Following Tew 's guilty plea of having an improper relationship with an enlisted man, Tew felt she lost everything (Hafemeister, 1997). The fact that nineteen years of service, retirement benefits, life insurance, and …show more content…
One cannot deny that, but are soldiers not human? Military members are human and humans make mistakes. Should one mistake cause you to lose everything you have worked for? Of course there should be a punishment, but the punishment should fit the crime. Tew 's one act of adultery resulted in the loss of everything she worked hard for (Hafemeister, 1997). Tew 's punishment was unfair and biased. Tew was not the only person at fault in this case, while she and her family lost all of her benefits Master Sgt. Craig Collier, also a married man who had an affair with Tew was not punished, but transferred to another Air Force base (Hafemeister, 1997). God forgives, but the military does