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Colo. Woman Declared AWOL After Complying With Judge's Custodial Order

By Jeralyn, Section War In Iraq
Posted on Sun Nov 02, 2003 at 08:20:22 AM EST
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A Colorado woman i faces punishment for refusing Iraq duty to avoid losing custody of children.

Simone Holcomb and her husband of three years, Vaughn Holcomb, also a soldier, were both sent to Iraq early this year. The children's paternal grandmother came from Ohio to look after them.

Then an ex-wife came along and sued for custoday. The Holcombs came home on emergency leave....

A judge in a custodial hearing mandated that one of the parents must stay home to look after the children in order for Vaughn to retain full custody of the two. ....Vaughn, 40, went back to Iraq. Simone, 30, stayed - without the Army's permission. Now she faces dismissal and even jail time.

"I was told by the Army ... to get on a plane," Simone said Saturday night. "I even told them it was unlawful and they said 'I don't care, get on a plane.' It's against the law for me to abandon my children. I can no sooner walk out on my children than I can rob a bank just because the Army told me to."

Simone is being treated as an AWOL.

Army officials have already stopped Simone's active-duty pay and are expected to begin the process of dismissing her from the military, according to an Army source.

....Simone, who has been in the military for six years, will find out in the coming days what action the Army will take against her.

She tried to get an emergency release from active duty or a reassignment to Fort Carson, but she was denied. She said she told them that her husband was due to retire from the Army soon, to no avail.

In the meantime, Army officials have made it clear she's breaking the law by being absent without leave - despite the Colorado judge's order. "She has sent them (commanding officers) e-mails every day from Day 1," Bearer said. "They say she is AWOL. They won't listen to what is going on."

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