Desertion

The unauthorized abandonment of a military post or duty by a member of the armed forces, without intent to return or, in the most serious cases, with intent to avoid a hazardous duty such as combat, distinguished under military law from the lesser offense of absence without leave, which lacks the same intent to permanently abandon service. In the United States, desertion is prosecuted under Article 85 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and desertion in a time of war has historically carried the possibility of a death sentence, though the last execution of a United States service member for desertion, Private Eddie Slovik, took place in 1945, and no service member has been executed for the offense since. Bowe Bergdahl's 2017 court-martial and guilty plea to desertion after leaving his post in Afghanistan in 2009 is among the most widely documented recent United States cases, resulting in a dishonorable discharge, reduction in rank and forfeiture of pay rather than imprisonment.