Single mother who refused Army deployment to receive discharge instead of court-martial

Army discharging single mom who refused deployment

SAVANNAH, Ga. — A single-mom Army soldier based in Georgia is being discharged from the military instead of facing a court-martial after she refused to deploy to Afghanistan, saying she had no one able to care for her infant son.

Spc. Alexis Hutchinson learned she would be spared from a military trial Thursday. Her attorney, Rai (RAY) Sue Sussman, said the Army cook was excited to hear the news.

However, the administrative discharge Fort Stewart commanders granted does have consequences. Hutchinson is being demoted to private and will lose all military and veterans benefits.

Hutchinson of Oakland, Calif., was arrested in November after she skipped her unit’s deployment flight. Hutchinson said she stayed back because her mother backed out of plans to keep her son.