Marine Corps Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller will be released from the brig Tuesday after striking a deal with the commanding general overseeing his case, the Marine Corps said in a statement.
The Marine rose to national fame on Aug. 26 when he posted a video to LinkedIn and Facebook in uniform, calling on senior military leaders to be held accountable for their failures in Afghanistan.
Scheller went on to make more videos and written statements critical of military and political leadership that were released on various social media platforms. His parents claim a Facebook post right before he was put in the confinement violated a gag order issued to him by his chain of command.
Scheller was put in pretrial confinement Sept. 27 and has been awaiting an Article 32 preliminary hearing, which is required before a case can proceed to court-martial.
He is being released “as a result of a mutual agreement between Lt. Col. Scheller, his Defense counsel, and the Commanding General, Training Command,” Capt. Sam Stephenson, Training and Education Command spokesman, told Marine Corps Times in an email. “No additional details regarding the agreement may be released at this time.”
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Scheller’s first video was released right after 13 U.S. service members were killed in Afghanistan.
It saw the lieutenant colonel immediately relieved of his command as the battalion commander of the Advanced Infantry Training Battalion at School of Infantry–East at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
On Sept. 25 before his confinement Scheller wrote a lengthy Facebook post where he criticized U.S. presidents from Donald Trump to Bill Clinton along with retired Gens. James Mattis, David Petraeus and Michael Flynn and his current chain of command before reiterating his desire to “bring the whole system down.”
Despite his attack on some of the current leaders of the Republican Party, several Republican members of Congress wrote a letter on Sept. 29, addressed to Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger, demanding Scheller’s release.
“In fact, this confinement appears to be simply for messaging, retribution and convenience,” the letter signed by 27 Republican lawmakers said.
“For the above reasons, we urge you to use your considerable authority to correct the misapplication of law and immediately remove LTC Scheller from his confinement.”
As of Sept. 28 the Marine Corps was considering charging Scheller with violations of the Art. 32 including Article 88 (contempt toward officials), Article 90 (willfully disobeying superior commissioned officer), Article 92 (failure to obey lawful general orders), Article 133 (conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman), Marine Corps Times previously reported.
The Marine Corps has not responded to Marine Corps Times with further information about those possible charges and where they now stand.
