Army Full General Relieved for Being Bad Boy

[Ralph]

Army four-star general relieved of command

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Army, in a rare disciplinary act against a four-star officer, said Tuesday it relieved Gen. Kevin P Byrnes of his command after an investigation into unspecified "personal conduct."

Byrnes was relieved as commander of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command on Monday by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker, according to a brief statement issued by Army headquarters at the Pentagon.

In that post, Byrnes oversaw all Army training programs and the development of war-fighting guidelines.

Although disciplinary action against general officers is not uncommon, it is extremely rare for a four-star general to be relieved of command. Byrnes held the position as commander of Training and Doctrine Command since November 2002. Before that he was director of the Army staff at Army headquarters in the Pentagon.

"The investigation upon which this relief is based is undergoing further review to determine the appropriate final disposition of this matter," the Army statement said.

A spokesman for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Bryan Whitman, said the investigation involved "matters of personal conduct," but he would not say more.

The deputy commander of Training and Doctrine Command, Lt. Gen. Anthony R. Jones, has been designated the acting commander, following the action against Byrnes, Army spokesman Paul Boyce said.

The spokesman said it was an Army policy not to release information about specific allegations in an investigation of an Army officer.

In April the Pentagon announced that Lt. Gen. William Wallace had been nominated for a fourth star and assignment as commander of Training and Doctrine Command to succeed Byrnes, but he has not yet been confirmed by the Senate. There was no public indication at the time that Byrnes was under investigation.

[Corlyss_D]

From Army Times website:
August 09, 2005

Commander of Training and Doctrine Command relieved

By Gina Cavallaro and Jim Tice
Times staff writers


The commanding general of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command Gen. Kevin P. Byrnes, was relieved of command Aug. 8 based on an investigation into unspecified charges, the Army public affairs office announced.

A statement published on the Army’s official Web site Tuesday stated that “the investigation upon which this relief is based is undergoing further review to determine the appropriate final disposition of this matter.” The relief of Byrnes was directed by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, the statement said.

No details were released by the Army, but a Pentagon source who spoke on the condition of anonymity revealed that the investigation centers on personal misconduct and is not on conduct related to his professional duties as a soldier and officer. A different Pentagon source confirmed that the investigation was conducted by the Defense Department Inspector General’s office and handed down to the Army IG.

The acting commander of TRADOC is Lt. Gen. Anthony R. Jones, who has been the deputy commander at TRADOC since June 2003, Army spokesman Paul Boyce said Tuesday.

Byrnes, a Field Artillery officer, has been at the helm of TRADOC at Fort Monroe, Va., for three years and was expected to retire. During his tenure there, he oversaw the writing of doctrine for the reorganization of the Army into modular units of action. He also helped implement the tenets contained in the Warrior Ethos, the Army’s defining principles of service.

TRADOC has operational oversight of 33 of the Army’s training schools, and includes the U.S. Army Accessions Command and the Recruiting Command.

Prior to taking over at TRADOC in November 2002, Byrnes was director of the Army staff in the Office of the Chief of Staff of the Army.

He is expected to be replaced by Lt. Gen. William S. Wallace, who was nominated for the post in April but has not yet been confirmed by the Senate. Wallace, an Armor officer who was the senior tactical commander of Army forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom, is commanding general of the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth. He was commander of the 4th Infantry Division during its transition into the Army’s first digital division.

A determination has not yet been made as to Byrnes’s retirement status and other issues related to the separation process. He is the first 4-star general in the Army’s recent history to have been relieved of command.

Among the four-star general or flag officers to have been relieved of command in recent years was Navy Adm. Richard C. Macke, sacked as commander of Pacific Command in 1995 for remarks he made about the case of U.S. Marines accused of raping a 12-year-old Japanese girl, and Gen. Michael Dugan, who was fired as chief of staff of the Air Force in 1990 for comments to reporters about planning for the 1991 Gulf War, according to an Associated Press report.

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[Ralph]

The scuttlebutt is that GEN Byrnes was making his staff listen to AC music during the entire work day.

[Corlyss_D]

The scuttlebutt is that GEN Byrnes was making his staff listen to AC music during the entire work day.

A hanging offense. I'm betting on dalliance with a subordinate.

[Ralph]

The scuttlebutt is that GEN Byrnes was making his staff listen to AC music during the entire work day.

A hanging offense. I'm betting on dalliance with a subordinate.

*****

Yes but apparently while listening to Elliott Carter's music.

[Corlyss_D]

Yes but apparently while listening to Elliott Carter's music.

See Barry's award winning comment. How could he focus with Carter's music in the background????

[Ralph]

Yes but apparently while listening to Elliott Carter's music.

See Barry's award winning comment. How could he focus with Carter's music in the background????

*****

He couldn't and she, frustrated, turned him in.

[jbuck919]

Here's my theory: They're training soldiers for endurance of boredom and difficult conditions (possibly rough interrogations as well) by forcing them to listen to hours of Dittersdorf. The general probably slapped a soldier who whined that he just couldn't take it anymore.

[Ralph]

Here's my theory: They're training soldiers for endurance of boredom and difficult conditions (possibly rough interrogations as well) by forcing them to listen to hours of Dittersdorf. The general probably slapped a soldier who whined that he just couldn't take it anymore.

*****

He'd get a Distinguished Service Medal if he used Dittersdorf to motivate his troops.