JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. –
On May 20, justice was served once again at Joint Base Andrews. For three full days, the general court-martial of Senior Airman Senator G. Negron, 779th Medical Support Squadron, was conducted in the courtroom at the legal office.
Airman Negron was charged with attempted distribution of Lysergic Acid Diethylamide on multiple occasions, use of marijuana, and fraudulent enlistment for failing to disclose his drug use prior to entering the Air Force.
During the trial, it was revealed that Airman Negron had attempted to distribute LSD to a confidential source who was working for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
On separate occasions, Airman Negron provided suspected LSD to the confidential source during two well- crafted OSI operations.
Only a few days prior to the first operation, Airman Negron had offered LSD to another member of his unit.
That member in turn reported Airman Negron's illegal activities to law enforcement which led to his role in the operations as a confidential source.
The OSI obtained authority to search Airman Negron's apartment off base and during that search, found three glass pipes with suspected marijuana residue.
When questioned about the pipes, Airman Negron admitted to smoking marijuana just a few weeks prior with his uncle during a recent visit. He also admitted to pre-service drug use.
The lead prosecutor in the case was Capt. Jason Harley. The jury deliberated for nearly five hours and in the end, found Airman Negron guilty of all but one of the charged specifications.
The panel, which was made up of four officers and three enlisted members, also sent Airman Negron a strong message with the sentence that they imposed: One year of confinement, a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and reduction to airman basic.
Airman Negron will be spending the next year of his life behind bars at the Charleston Naval Brig in South Carolina.
Furthermore, even after he serves his time in confinement, he will live the rest of his life with a federal conviction and a dishonorable discharge from the Air Force.
His sentence is a sobering reminder of the stiff penalties all Air Force members face if they choose to get involved with illegal drug activity. Members of the military are held to a much higher standard than the general population.
Airman Negron failed to remember this and will pay for it the rest of his life.