A soldier's form of expression through rap lyrics has led him to dismissal from the U.S Army. Specialist Marc A. Hall will come out of service with no benefits for the four years of service he put in. Hall sent the Pentagon a violent rap song protesting his redeployment to Iraq, and also for threatening his fellow troops. No charges were filed against Hall, who admitted to being guilty for his actions so Army officials chose a discharge over taking him to trial.
Hall was serving jail time since Dec. 11 of last year, two days before he was scheduled to leave for Iraq. The unit that Hall belonged to was the Army's 3rd Infantry Division out of Fort Stewart, Ga. He was charged with the offense of directing a threat after telling his battalion commander that he might attack another U.S. soldier.
The main cause for the dismissal was the recording of a rap song on a CD that Hall wrote and sent to the Army's personnel office in July 2009. Just two months before he was to finish his four year enlistment, Army lawyers said that Hall knew that his unit was scheduled to deploy. Hall's lyrics were focused on the "stop-loss" policy and reflected images of himself opening fire on anyone that tried to hold him back.
A sample of the lyrics: "I got a [expletive] magazine with 30 rounds on a three round burst, ready to fire down. "Still against the wall, I grab my M-4, spray and watch all the bodies hit the floor...I bet you never stop-loss nobody no more, in your next lifetime of course. No remorse."
Hall's civilian attorney, David Gespass of Birmingham, Ala. said that though some of the soldier's words may seem threatening and unnecessary, he is convinced that he never attended to to hurt anyone.
Gespass stated, "The song was a way for him to sort of vent. He was, I think, less and less happy about the idea of even having a weapon and using it
Comments
Whoever accepted this young man for Basic training should resign from the Army himself.
Very interesting article. Thanks for sharing.
One wonders how he got as far as he did?
Do they give these young people any kind of psychiatric exam before they sign the contract? If not, they should.
No, I never received any type of psychiatric exam before I enlisted. I agree, this should be mandatory prior to entering the armed forces.
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