United States v. Private (E2) VANESSA AYALA-SANTIAGO

UNITED STATES ARMY COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS Before CAMPANELLA, SALUSSOLIA, and FLEMING Appellate Military Judges UNITED STATES, Respondent Private (E2) VANESSA AYALA-SANTIAGO United States Army, Appellant ARMY 20170136 Headquarters, Fort Drum S. Charles Neill, Military Judge Colonel Peter R. Hayden, Staff Judge Advocate For Appellant: Major Julie L. Borchers, JA; Captain Daniel C. Kim, JA (on brief).

For Appellee: Pursuant to A.C.C.A. Rule 15.2, no response filed.

22 February 2018 ---------------------------------- SUMMARY DISPOSITION ---------------------------------- CAMPANELLA, Senior Judge: A military judge sitting as a special court-martial convicted appellant of two specifications of being absent without leave (AWOL) in violation of Article 86, Uniform Code of Military Justice [UCMJ], 10 U.S.C. § 886 (2012). The military judge sentenced appellant to a bad-conduct discharge, confinement for 150 days, and reduction to the grade of E-1.

Instead of following the advice of his Staff Judge Advocate, the initial convening authority signed an action approving the adjudged sentence instead of a sentence limited by the pretrial agreement. Subsequently, in an undated document, a successor-in-command acting as the general court-martial convening authority attempted to “correct” the initial action without rescinding the previously published action.

Appellant asserts neither assigned errors nor issues pursuant to United States v. Grostefon, 12 M.J. 431 (C.M.A. 1982). Having reviewed appellant’s case pursuant to Article 66, UCMJ, we affirm the findings and so much of the sentence as provides AYALA-SANTIAGO—ARMY 20170136 for a bad-conduct discharge, confinement for 121 days, and reduction to E-1. * Appellant is credited with eighty-three days of credit against the sentence to confinement.

CONCLUSION The findings of guilty and the sentence are AFFIRMED.

Judge SALUSSOLIA and Judge FLEMING concur.

FORTHE FOR THECOURT: COURT:

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MALCOLM MALCOLMH.H.SQUIRES, JR.JR. SQUIRES Clerk of Court Clerk of Court

* The promulgating order is amended to reflect that prior to findings, the Specification of The Additional Charge was amended by deleting the AWOL termination date of 7 November 2008 and substituting therefor the date of 2 August 2008.