Army panel weighs dismissing ex-Green Beret hero from ranks

FORT BRAGG, NC (AP) — A Fort Bragg panel of Army Special Forces officers is meeting to weigh arguments why a soldier stripped of his heroism honors and the right to call himself a Green Beret should stay on active duty.

The hearing scheduled to start Tuesday and run for several days offers Maj. Mathew Golsteyn his chance to fight back against dismissal from the Army, a less-than-honorable discharge and the loss of veteran’s benefits.

The Army started the process to kick Golsteyn out of the military in February after the Army secretary revoked the Silver Star medal Golsteyn won in Afghanistan for battlefield heroism. The Army head also rejected a recommendation to upgrade Golsteyn’s honor to the second-highest military decoration a soldier can receive for extraordinary heroism.

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