"After the application has been received by the person's commander, the commander will arrange for the applicant to be interviewed as soon as possible by a military chaplain and a psychiatrist."
Once you notify your chain of command and give your commander a copy of your application (make at least two copies to keep for yourself), it will be the commander's responsibility to set up three interviews: one with a psychiatrist, one with a chaplain, and one with an investigating officer.
From the minute you submit your completed application, along with the DA 4187 and Privacy Act Waiver, your chain of command is on the clock. Your unit has 90 days from the day of submission to forward your packet on to the highest approving authority.
Psychiatrist's Interview
This is little more than a psychological checkup, designed to determine whether or not you are mentally fit to apply as a CO (only in the military would they suspect you of insanity for NOT wanting to kill people). This interview should have little bearing on your packet, but take it seriously. Giving the psychiatrist any reason to suspect you of insanity is a sure way to slow down the processing of your application. Also, even if your beliefs on peace come from a deeply religious source, this is probably not the best time to talk about your conversations with God (or any other deity, for that matter).
Chaplain's Interview
Within a few weeks of submitting your application, your commander should arrange a time for you to speak with a chaplain from outside your unit. Normally, anything said to a chaplain is protected, but this is NOT true with the Co interview. After the interview, the chaplain's job is to write a detailed report describing your beliefs, your demeanor, and assessing your sincerity. The chaplain does not make a recommendation to either approve or deny your request, but his opinion can certainly influence the officers that are going to scrutinize your application.
As a man or woman of faith, a chaplain is likely to respect your decision even if they don't agree with it. Regardless of their own spiritual tradition, they should appreciate your request because you are acting on your convictions. Whether or not the chaplain seems supportive, just be honest and clear when talking about the history and nature of your beliefs. Try not to express too much uncertainty, as this can be perceived as a sign of insincerity. Though questioning your own beliefs is a perfectly normal, healthy thing for any thinking person to do, it is best not to vocalize those questions during a CO interview.
The Investigating Officer
Shortly after the submission of your CO application, your unit Commander should appoint an investigating officer, grade 0-3 or higher, to take charge of your case. The selected officer cannot be in your direct chain of command, but he or she can come from your battalion. The officer is supposed to be "knowledgeable in policies and procedures relating to conscientious objection," but almost no one in the military is. In fact, unless he or she has been through the process before, your investigating officer may have to do just as much reading on conscientious objection as you do.
It is the job of your investigating officer to make a final recommendation regarding your request for CO status. The officer will review your application, familiarize him or herself with the appropriate regulations, interview your leadership and fellow soldiers, and conduct a hearing designed to establish the nature and sincerity of your beliefs. This is arguably the most important part of the CO process. Other than your own submitted application, the investigating officer's report is what will be used by the higher-ups to make their decision. The final decision-makers will probably never meet you or talk with you. All they will have to go on is what you submitted and what the investigating officer says about you.
Preparing for the Hearing
Because the hearing is so important, you should make sure you are well-prepared. The first thing to start doing, well in advance, is to come up with the hardest questions you can possibly imagine regarding your beliefs on war.
Put your beliefs to the test to the best of your ability, and have friends and loved ones help.
Write down your beliefs, and do your best to punch holes in them. The investigating officer will have your application for a few weeks before the hearing, and he or she will have plenty of time to come up with things you may not have thought of. Don't be caught off guard.
Here are some questions to think about:
Would you have fought in World War II?
Would you support war if it were possible, through the use of future technology, to wage war without killing a single person?
Isn't it more ethical to kill a few hundred people if it means saving thousands of lives?
What would you do if the country were invaded? Would you take up arms to defend your own country, family, and home?
These are difficult questions, and require deeply personal answers. For some people, violence is perfectly acceptable as a form of self-defense. Others believe that a pacifist should respond to violence by doing everything in his or her power to protect others without using force, even at great personal risk.
The Hearing
The hearing with your investigating officer is your last chance to submit additional materials and references to support your claim. Officers from your unit may be in attendance, but they will merely be there to observe. The purpose of the hearing is for the investigating officer to determine two things:
1. Do your beliefs fit in with the military's definition of "conscientious objector?"
2. Are you sincere in those beliefs?
That's it. You don't need to be a philosophical genius, with perfect answers to every question, nor do you need to be a religious monk, living a life of perfect discipline and virtue. All you need to be is someone who believes that war is wrong, that it never solves more problems than it creates.
Answering Questions
Remember to keep your answers centered in the commonsense, real world. You could spend all day asking "what if" questions about specific historical or future situations, but you are ultimately talking about your beliefs in the present, toward modern day warfare and your participation in it. Don't forget that, and don't get trapped trying to work out every angle of a hypothetical situation.
Congratulations. Now that you've made the decision to file as a CO, you'll be joining a long history of soldiers who have spoken out against war. It is crucial to remember at this stage that you are not alone, which is why this site provides contacts you can speak with about your decision.
The first thing you need to do is download a copy of DOD Directive 1300.6:
DOD Directive 1300.6, Conscientious Objectors [November 21, 2003]
Also try to find the regulation governing conscientious objection for your specific service:
Navy MILPERSMAN (NAVPERS 15560 C) §3620250
Print these out and read them back to back, as many times as you need to. This is going to become your legal bible over the next few months.
The sad fact is that few soldiers, even military lawyers, are familiar with the rules governing conscientious objection. Most people know only what they have heard, and most of that is false. I can't tell you the number of soldiers, many of them officers, who said "I don't think you can do that" when I informed them of my request to be discharged as a conscientious objector. The better you know the regulations, the better you'll be able to defend your rights as a conscientious objector.
PREPARING YOUR PACKET
Though the first step to filing as a CO is notifying your chain of command, it is best to prepare your packet ahead of time. I have heard stories of Unit Commanders who, after being notified of the soldier's decision to seek CO status, have given the soldier only one week to submit their request.
Components of the CO Packet
(Each component links to an online version of my original CO packet. Hopefully this will provide a useful example.)
DA FORM 4187
Make sure this, like all forms, is filed correctly. Check for typos and make sure every block is filled out, because small errors can seriously delay your packet.
REFERENCES
These should be written by anyone who can vouch for your religious or philosophical conviction, your character, or your integrity. If your beliefs are religious in nature, try to get references from someone within your religious community.
REQUIRED INFORMATION
This is the heart and soul of your packet. I'll go over some of the important parts:
a. General Information
This is just personal information, similar to what might be on a college application.
b. Training and Belief
This is it. Other than your interviews, this is the most important part, the section that is going to be reviewed and read by every approving authority all the way up the chain of command. Your goal in this section is to be as clear as possible, leaving no room for speculation regarding the nature and character of your beliefs.
(1) "An express, specific statement as to whether the person requests classification as a conscientious objector 1-0, or as a conscientious objector 1-A-0.
1-0 conscientious objectors are opposed to any behavior that advocates war, including the wearing of military uniforms. 1-0 CO's are seeking a complete discharge from the military.
1-A-0 conscientious objectors are opposed to fighting and violence, but are comfortable serving as noncombatants.
Deciding which type of CO status to request is a completely personal decision. Just remember that a CO application for 1-0 can't be "downgraded" to a 1-A-0 as part of a bargain.
(2) "A description of the nature of the belief that requires the person to seek separation from the military service or assignment to noncombatant training and duty for reasons of conscience. "
This section of the application is crucial, as it requires you to summarize your beliefs on war and violence. Be sure to be very specific here, with no room for confusion. If your decision is inspired by a religious creed, talk about the tenets of your faith. If your decision is a philosophical one, spell out your beliefs as clearly as possible. Remember, your beliefs cannot be political in nature, so avoid any discussion of politics, foreign policy, or theories on governance.
(3) "An explanation as to how his or her beliefs changed or developed, to include an explanation as to what factors (how, when, and from whom or from what source training received and belief acquired) caused the change in or development of conscientious
objection beliefs."
This is your story. Describe the evolution of your beliefs, and make sure to emphasize that your opposition to war was something that crystallized after your enlistment. For your packet to be approved, it must be clear that you didn't enlist as a conscientious objector, that something happened to change your mind. This something could be as traumatic as a deployment or as simple as reading a particular book, hearing someone speak, or attending the services of a different religion tradition.
(4) "An explanation as to when these beliefs become incompatible with military service and why."
This section is a follow-up to (3), and asks you to relate the experience or set of experiences that convinced you that war was fundamentally unethical. This doesn't need to be an earth-shattering spiritual revelation, though it might be. For most people, there was a time when they started to question the work of the military, and those questions eventually led to the belief that war was wrong. For instance, I first started to have questions about war while deployed in Afghanistan. Working in a clinic, we would frequently see children who were badly maimed and wounded. I started to question our presence in Afghanistan after realizing that some of these kids could have been hurt by bombs we dropped all over the countryside, but my opposition to war didn't become fixed until I returned to the U.S. and started reading Buddhist literature.
(5) "An explanation as to the circumstances, if any, under which the person believes in the use of force, and to what extent, under any foreseeable circumstances."
Be very careful with this section, as this is where many CO applicants get tripped up. While stationed at Fort Bragg, I heard of one CO applicant whose packet was turned down when he admitted that he would probably return fire if his unit was ever attacked. The soldier was probably just trying to be honest, admitting that most of us would shoot back out of instinct and training if you or your buddies were being attacked. This doesn't necessarily mean he thought that firing at the enemy was the ethical thing to do, he just admitted that it would likely be his instinctual reaction. You need to really dig deep for this section and determine under what circumstances, if any, you would approve of the use of violence. Perhaps you only believe in the use of non-lethal force, or maybe you would kill in self-defense if you had to.
(6) "An explanation as to what in the person's life most conspicuously demonstrates the consistency and depth of his or her beliefs that have rise to his or her claim."
This can be a challenging section, as your beliefs on war may not have led to a dramatic shift in lifestyle. Your answer may relate to behavior in the military. In my case, I turned down the E-5 board because I felt it would irresponsible to advance to a position of leadership while doubting the very purpose of the Army.
(7) "An explanation as to how the applicant's daily life style has changed as a result of his or her beliefs and what future actions he or she plans to continue to support his or her beliefs."
This more or less overlaps with (6). This is a good place to mention frequent attendance of religious services, a change in diet, daily prayer or reading of important religious or philosophical texts, or anything else you do that is consistent with your beliefs.
SO YOU WANT TO BE A CO?
Making the decision to be a conscientious objector is hardly an easy one. There are a number of different factors that may influence you, but let's start with the most important:
YOUR BELIEFS
Do you feel that war is wrong? Do you feel uncomfortable carrying a weapon or training for combat? Was there one particular experience that changed the way you look at war? Do these beliefs come from religious conviction or a more personal, philosophical position?
Here are the important things to remember about your beliefs in regards to CO application:
1. The military does not allow for a nuanced position on war and violence. To be granted CO status, you MUST be opposed to ALL wars. If your application to be a CO is based on the wrongness of a particular war, your packet will be rejected. Additionally, you must be personally committed to peace over violence in almost every situation.
2. Your beliefs on war cannot be political in nature to be considered a CO.
3. Assuming that you volunteered to join the military, you must have come to the conclusion that war is wrong AFTER your enlistment. You may have been asked if you were a CO when you joined, and you probably answered "no." To be considered a CO following enlistment, you must prove that your beliefs against war crystallized AFTER enlisting. This is far from uncommon, as many soldiers simply do not realize how they feel about war until they are actually deployed or start to understand the implications of a deployment.
FRIENDS AND FAMILY
Everyone around you will have an opinion on the subject of conscientious objection, and it is likely that not all of them will be supportive towards your feelings about war. Though the people around you are clearly important, you have to remember that this is a deeply personal decision, and no one can make it for you. If you truly feel that war is fundamentally unethical way to solve problems, then you may need to seek CO status regardless of what those around you think. Once you make the decision to say "no" to war, you can hope that friends and family have the maturity to recognize your conviction.
OTHER SOLDIERS
Some soldiers in your unit may not be supportive of your decision to seek CO status, but others may understand what you are doing and feel similar. It is likely that someone will give you a hard time, accusing you of being a coward or saying that you are just trying to get out. Remember, the most courageous thing a person can do is to stand up for what they believe in. Other soldiers may believe that war is good, so they are acting on their ethics by remaining in the military. Why should you be denied the same right? You will be following a perfectly legal process recognized by the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and if they don't agree with the process, they should take it up with the Pentagon.
As for your NCO's and Chain of Command, they may give you a hard time because many of them are lifers and believe in the ethical application of war. However, if you are firm in your convictions and make sure to be clear that you are not judging or putting down your fellow soldiers for supporting war, they may respect your decision. Ultimately, most leaders would prefer not to have CO's in their units. Who wants to risk deploying someone who might think twice in the face of the enemy?
YOUR BENEFITS
You may be concerned about your benefits if your CO application is accepted. In terms of benefits, you may or may not receive full benefits following discharge as a CO, depending on the characterization of your discharge. Some people mistakenly believe that all CO's lose their VA benefits. They are probably referring to this passage:
"the discharge of persons on the grounds that they are conscientious objectors who refuse to perform military duty, wear the uniform, or otherwise comply with lawful orders of competent military authority, will bar all their rights under the laws administered by the Veterans Administration (VA)."
All this is saying is that if you refuse orders while still in the service, you may get a dishonorable discharge and thus lose all VA benefits. It is possible for you to get an honorable discharge, but that is at the discretion of your commander. Your commander may characterize your discharge as "other than honorable," and in this case you will not be eligible for most VA benefits.
Another potential loss to be aware of is your enlistment bonus. If you received a cash bonus upon enlistment, you may be forced to repay a portion of it for not completing your entire commitment.
By applying for CO status, you do risk the loss of money and benefits. This possibility for personal loss is a test of your convictions as someone opposed to war, and should be taken into account before making the decision to submit your application.
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