Buck court-martial to proceed

Air Force doctor asks Lott for help

By David Tortorano

The Sun Herald (Biloxi, MS)

May 19, 2001

KEESLER AFB -The Air Force decided Friday to proceed with the court-martial of a physician who disobeyed an order to take the anthrax vaccine.

Capt. John Buck, 32, pleaded not guilty after the commander of the Second Air Force decided that proceeding with the court-martial was the "fairest method of dealing with this matter."

It was the second setback in two days for Buck, an emergency room physician. Thursday, Lt. Col. Mark Allred, the military judge, ruled Buck had disobeyed a lawful order.

Buck, who was supposed to take the vaccine before deployment to the Middle East, had claimed in a motion that the vaccine is experimental and potentially hazardous, and that it's unlawfully forced on soldiers.

But Allred disagreed.

Shortly after Allred's ruling, Buck submitted a request that he be allowed to resign from the Air Force. He did so in hopes the resignation would prompt the Air Force to drop the court-martial or delay it until a decision could be made on the resignation.

But the Air Force said Buck's conditional resignation - the captain wants, at the least, a general discharge - can proceed separately from the court-martial.

The Air Force statement said resignation requests usually are made "long before the start of trial," rather than after trial has begun. In this case, it began Monday with arraignment and the filing of motions.

The court-martial resumes at 8 a.m. Monday with jury selection. More than a dozen officers will be questioned by both sides, who can strike panelists they believe are biased. At least five officers must sit on the jury.

During the first part of the court-martial, a doctor for the defense said the anthrax vaccine was thoroughly tested only on animals. But the military insists it is the best weapon against biological attacks.

If convicted, Buck faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, forfeiture of pay and dismissal from the military.

Friday, a supporter of Buck's handed reporters a letter the captain had written to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., asking for his support in getting a delay in the trial.

It was accompanied by a petition with more than 120 names asking Lott to contact the secretaries of defense and the Air Force to encourage them to grant Buck's resignation request.

Buck has become a key player in the fight against the anthrax vaccine. He and a former Air Force major filed suit May 2 against the Food and Drug Administration and the Defense Department in U.S. District Court in Washington seeking to end the anthrax vaccine program.