A Special Forces sergeant major faces a general court-martial in March on several UCMJ charges stemming from a series of alleged domestic assaults in 2019, according to Army officials.
Sgt. Maj. Travis Alfred is a senior Special Forces NCO assigned to 1st Special Forces Command, according to Maj. Dan Lessard, the unit’s spokesperson. The Fort Bragg, North Carolina-based unit, which is overseeing the trial, provided a heavily-redacted copy of Alfred’s charge sheet upon Army Times’ request.
“[Alfred] is facing a court martial for a number of charges centered on alleged domestic violence and threatening his spouse,” Lessard said in a statement accompanying the document. “We take all allegations of domestic violence seriously, but we also want to make clear that this service member is innocent until proven guilty.”
Alfred’s military attorney declined to provide comment for this story when reached for comment.
According to the charge sheet, Alfred assaulted an unnamed family member on three separate occasions in late 2019.
Alfred struck the family member “on [their] shoulder with a broom” during the first reported assault, which the charge sheet said occurred in September 2019. Prosecutors also said Alfred “strangl[ed]” and threatened to kill the family member during the alleged attack.
Then on Nov. 11, 2019, Alfred “push[ed]” the family member “on [their] head” and held their “arms with his knees” and again threatened to kill them, the charge sheet stated.
During a third assault on Nov. 20, 2019, Alfred choked the family member, threatened to kill them, pointed a loaded gun at them, and fired it “under circumstances such as to endanger human life,” the charge sheet stated.
It’s not clear why the alleged incidents, which occurred off-post in Cameron, North Carolina, are being prosecuted via court-martial rather than in the civilian justice system.
Alfred, who was once a member of Army Special Operations Command’s parachute demonstration team, the Black Daggers, faces multiple specified charges under Article 115 (communicating threats), Article 128 (assault), and Article 128b (domestic violence).
The alleged firearm discharge resulted in an Article 114 charge.
Alfred’s court-martial is tentatively scheduled for March 2022, according to court records available online.
Davis Winkie covers the Army for Military Times. He studied history at Vanderbilt and UNC-Chapel Hill, and served five years in the Army Guard. His investigations earned the Society of Professional Journalists' 2023 Sunshine Award and consecutive Military Reporters and Editors honors, among others. Davis was also a 2022 Livingston Awards finalist.
