Have you been asked to provide a character statement? Here’s what you should consider.

Between BOLC templates, Army Publications, senior NCOs, and peers, Junior Officers have plenty of resources aiding in development during their budding careers, but one often overlooked situation is when a former Soldier asks “Hey Sir/Ma’am, can you write me a character witness statement?” Websites like The Army Writer provide a template for formatting a character witness statement and even provide advice on what a junior Officer may include, but there exists little advice on how to find the right words or how to formulate your stance on the statement. Given these statements impact not only the Soldier and their family, but also you as the senior in the relationship, this can be a daunting task for a Junior Officer. 

So what do you do? 

This is exactly what I asked myself when approached by a former Soldier to write such a statement; I was concerned with supporting the individual, but also ensuring that I did not contribute to a potential demise of military integrity by embellishing traits about the Soldier. Stuck between what I felt like was a rock and a hard place, I turned to a Senior Leader for his advice, and received the following recommendations for Junior Officers to think about when writing a statement.

Thoughts from a Senior Leader

Receiving a request to provide a character statement is an honor that comes with some responsibility. It’s an honor that a Soldier who worked with you previously thinks highly of you and your ability to communicate with a current commander in a positive, impactful way. Before taking this important step, you should take the time to understand the circumstances, reflect on your time with the Soldier and their demonstrated behaviors, values, and ethics, and consider their potential for future service in the Army. 

“There are three sides to every story, Side A, Side B, and the truth – and the truth usually lies somewhere in between A and B.” This is a common phrase commanders hear and see play out when assessing non-judicial punishment or other actions which may impact a Soldier’s future service. If asked to provide a character statement, it’s important you do your due diligence and understand the situation. Do not attempt to gain context through text and email, you must have a conversation, face to face is ideal, but over the phone is the bare minimum. Ask follow-up questions. “You got a DUI, did you drink that day? How much? When? What was your plan when you went out? Why did you decide to drink and drive afterward?”  You should be assessing intent and decision-making. This conversation will be uncomfortable, and it should be. If the Soldier doesn’t want to have this conversation, their silence may be an indicator of their decision-making and self-reflection. Consider speaking to others who may have been around the situation as well to help provide greater understanding.

Quick example – I had a SSG receive a DUI. He was at home for the evening and had a few beers throughout the day with no intentions of going out. He received a call from a couple of his squad members who went out and needed a ride. He thought he was “good” based on the time and amount of his last drinks. He had a BAC over 0.0 but under the legal intoxication limit of .08 (newsflash – it doesn’t matter, above 0.0 is still driving under the influence in some states). He was charged with DUI-Less Safe. While I was disappointed in him, and his internal risk assessment was off, it was hard to fault his logic at the moment and his intentions of going to pick up his Soldiers so they could arrive home safely. That Soldier overcame the DUI, became a Master Gunner, and is continuing to lead well. They don’t always end in success stories though!

Once you understand the circumstances, reflect on your experiences with the Soldier. Were the actions inconsistent with the Soldier you remember? Consider that people change, or this Soldier may not have shown you the poor decision-making or values that led to their alleged offenses. However, if the Soldier consistently demonstrated high standards, and this incident was out of character for them, it helps shape your character statement. You can provide examples of many times when they demonstrated strong character, aiming to show this situation may truly be a one-off. Finally, if the actions they are accused of reflect in some of your experiences with them in the past, your discussion with the soldier and your own reflections may lead you to decide not to provide a character statement. For example, if someone is always making inappropriate comments and they are alleged to have made inappropriate comments to the wrong people in the wrong venue, then you may decide that their past behavior is consistent with this circumstance and that may sway your decision on whether or not to provide a character statement. Just because you were asked, doesn’t mean you are obligated to provide one. 

Example: A former 1SG in a battalion I served in as a Field Grade was under investigation and potentially receiving a General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand for counter-productive leadership for his actions as a 1SG in a follow-on organization. He reached out to me for a character statement. After discussing the incident(s) with him and reviewing some of the Soldiers’ sworn statements, I discussed with him how I could see some of his behaviors from our time together were amplified and reflected in the current accusations. I declined to provide a character statement and unfortunately, we haven’t spoken since. 

Finally, while it’s not your sole decision, you should consider this Soldier’s potential for future service in the U.S. Army as part of your decision calculus on providing a character statement. In some circumstances, Soldiers are trying to demonstrate this incident is not consistent with their demonstrated behavior, values, and ethics. Other times, Soldiers ask for these statements to reduce the level of punishment they know they’ll receive, in other words, the accusation was already validated and now the commander is determining the consequences, so they’re hoping to soften the blow to their career or characterization of punishment. If the incident is severe enough, their potential to overcome it and continue serving may be limited. An experienced commander receiving expert counsel from their Command Sergeant Major and Staff Judge Advocate will likely see and understand this and take it into account. A Private First Class who fails a urinalysis is more likely to overcome and continue serving for years, while a Staff Sergeant will likely not ever get selected by a board for Sergeant First Class.  In these instances, sometimes the most caring thing a Commander can do is get them out of the Army and focus on their transition and future life. As a person in a position to provide a character statement, you should consider their potential for future service to help shape your comments. 

Food for thought: Understand retention control points. A staff sergeant who will never get promoted may be able to make it to 20 years and retire, but not always. RCPs, especially at this rank, move around and a Soldier may be able to retire at 20 years in that rank today, but in two years this may not be the case. This Soldier could find themselves outprocessing the Army at 16 years. If they instead got out of the Army after their incident, they could focus on developing the skills for another career with more predictability in their life and possible stability for their family.

OK, so you’ve decided to write that character statement. Here are a few things to consider and some perspective from a former battalion commander who saw many character statements from fellow Soldiers, former commanders, teachers, preachers, coaches, and friends. 

1. Understand you are putting your name and lending your reputation to this statement. 
2. If you know the commander adjudicating the incident or deciding on the punishment, expect your words and relationship may carry more weight, positively or negatively, with that commander. 
3. Acknowledge the incident if that’s not in doubt, recognize its severity and how it impacts the good order and discipline of their current unit, and don’t dismiss it.
4. Tell a good story or provide some examples of their service or leadership which help the current commander see a different side of the Soldier. Right now, the commander is going off the current chain of command’s perspective and a whole lot of paperwork (arrest form, sworn statements, text messages, etc). Give them a different view of the Soldier. 
5. Talk about your assessment of their potential future service. Talk about the leadership they may provide to Soldiers in the future, if you think it’ll be a positive experience. Discuss how you expect them to grow and develop from this experience. 
6. Lastly, after you write your character statement, feel free to have some trusted confidants review it. The battalion Chaplain, a JAG officer, a 1SG, or a Sergeant Major – best if they are not in the unit of the Soldier. Ask for their input and how the letter resonates with them. 

A Soldier reaching out to a former leader to provide a character statement is a vulnerable act. It speaks to how they view you, their leader, and the trust and confidence they put in you. It is also an act that comes with great responsibility on your part as you balance your relationship with what’s best for the Army and the Soldiers they may continue to lead in the future. Whether or not you decide to provide the statement, be there for them as a human being and a friend. In especially serious situations, hearing from you about how they will overcome this event, may be the inspiration they need to hear to focus on the next step.

Stephen Magennis is an Infantry officer who has led at Platoon through Battalion levels in Stryker, Airborne, Air Assault, Light Infantry Task Force, and training formations.

Nicholas Swartz is an Engineer Officer who served as an Engineer Dive Detachment Executive Officer for both 511^th ENG Dive Det and 74^th ENG Dive DET before working for the Office of the Chief Information Officer as a product manager for enterprise-level DevSecOps tools.