by Bill Mesce
“Just cold.”
“I thought you’d want to know…”
“Yes?”
“Your pal is coming to town.”
“My…”
“Harry. Probably fly in tomorrow. You should get to bed. You don’t look so hot.”
Silver–tongued chap though he normally was, Ryan seemed at a loss for anything further to say, which told me something of the off–putting mien I was presenting. Rather than his usual glib fare–thee–well, he merely nodded and left.
Harry was coming. The wearing sound of the invulnerables in the barroom had reached an intolerable pitch, so I poured myself another splash. At least for the days he was here, I’d not have to sit through the grim show alone.
*
Ryan had piggy–backed Harry onto a courier flight carrying dispatches from Rome to the SHAEF headquarters at Versailles, and then on to London. Several junior officers, British and American, were accompanying the dispatch satchels. Young and enthusiastic, they looked to engage Harry in time–passing chit–chat. One of the privileges of rank, Harry had enjoyed learning, was that he now held a station at which he had only to frown over the tops of his reading spectacles and execute an authoritative shuffling of papers to scare off such intrusions.
The case file Joe Ryan had provided Harry with was not particularly thick, though Harry quickly and bleakly determined that, considering the contents of the few items therein, it didn’t need to be.
Harry’s first page of study was headed, “Featured Players.” Typical of Joe Ryan, the Judge Advocate colonel had spent some time doodling in the heading to make it resemble a cinema marquee, while the actual contents were barely decipherable scribblings:
1st Army
LtGen Courtney Hodges
HQ – Chaudfontaine (Blgm)
V Corps
MajGen Leonard Gerow
HQ – Eupen (Belgm)
28 Division
MajGen Norm Cota
HQ – Rott (Belgm)
(28 now rest/refit
new HQ Wiltz – Lux)
103 Rgmt
Col Henry Bright
(temp attached 28 Div as of Nov)
3 Batt.
Col Conrad Porter (MIA)
XO Maj Whitcomb Joyce
As divisional commander, Harry knew Cota would have been the convening authority for Dominick Sisto’s court–martial, so Harry made a note to learn something of the man, as well as the regimental commander, Colonel Bright, who had signed off on the charges before sending them up to division. As for Porter and his exec, Joyce, Harry had actually met them almost a year earlier while Sisto’s unit had been in Italy. Though Harry’s recollection of them was skimpy at best, he remembered not caring much for either of them.
Ryan had also provided a timeline to give Harry a picture of the sequence of events (here the headline doodle was of a cartoonish alarm clock):
10/28UK – 103 Rgmt detached 37th Div
Ordered Huertgen sector
10/30 103 ships
11/2 28th Div committed Huertgen
11/4 103 arrive Rott, attached to 28th
3 bn assigned Hill 399 Schmidt sector
Nite 11/4–53bn/103 deployed Huertgen
Replace elmnts 112th Rgmt opposite
Hill 399
11/53 103 assault Hill 399 – fails
11/6 2nd assault Hill 399 – fails
Dom. Sisto assume CO L Co
Nite 11/6Replcmnts arrive 3/103
11/7 3rd assault Hill 399 – fails
Porter MIA
Joyce assume CO
Nite 11/7 112 & 3/103 withdrawn Schmidt sector
11/8 Joyce forward charges against Sisto to Bright
Bright forward chrgs to 28 HQ
11/11 Prelim inquiry
11/13 28 HQ signs off charges
Refer matter JAG/Liege
28 Div (w/103) withdrawn Huertgen for refit
Sisto held local
11/5Formal charges served
Then came the Investigating Officer’s report, dated 11 November, addressed to the divisional commander from one “Capt. S. O’Steen”:
By order of Maj. Gen. Norman A. Cota, commanding general, 28th Division (Rott), a hearing was held this date to investigate charges forwarded by Maj. Whitcomb Joyce, acting commanding officer, 3rd Battalion/103rd Regiment temporarily attached to the 28th, concerning actions by 2nd Lt. Dominick V. Sisto, acting commanding officer, L Company, 3/103 on 11/7/44 while engaged against enemy forces on Hill 399, Schmidt sector, Huertgen area of operations.
According to Maj. Joyce, in an 11/7 attack on the hill, Lt. Sisto was to lead a special assault detail of approximately 20 members of L Company from Phase Line II against an enemy position at the hill’s summit. Battalion CO Col. Conrad Porter was to accompany the assault detail.
The attacking rifle companies reached the phase line some time after 0900, and the special assault detail jumped off from the phase line at approximately 1000 under heavy enemy fire. Because of communications difficulties, Maj. Joyce moved to a forward observation post across from 399 from which he could directly observe the special assault detail gain the top of the hill.
At that time, Maj. Joyce ordered a composite reserve company composed of the battalion’s I & R, Mine, Antitank, and Ammunition and Pioneer platoons, as well as additional troops from the HQ Company, under the command of 1st Lt. Walter Tully, I & R platoon leader, to advance to the hill and exploit the breakthrough. Despite observing the success of the special assault detail, Lt. Tully refused to advance without first receiving a pre–arranged go signal from the special assault detail.
Immediately thereafter, Maj. Joyce received radio communication from Lt. Sisto informing him that the special assault detail was withdrawing from the hilltop, and that he was also ordering the withdrawal of all attack forces from the hill. Maj. Joyce issued a direct order to Lt. Sisto to hold his position. Lt. Sisto claimed to be operating under orders from Col. Porter who could not be located. When Maj. Joyce attempted to pursue the matter, Lt. Sisto broke off communication and proceeded to bring his men down from the hilltop and withdraw all engaged 3rd Battalion troops from Hill 399. When the attack force regained the original jump–off position, Lt. Sisto informed Maj. Joyce that Col. Porter was missing and presumed dead.
PFC Avram Kasabian, Lt. Tully’s RTO who was present during the radio communication between Maj. Joyce and Lt. Sisto, confirms that Maj. Joyce issued the order to Lt. Sisto to hold his position atop the hill.
PFC Paul Makris, Lt. Sisto’s RTO, was in a position to hear Lt. Sisto’s end of the communication and confirm that Sisto refused the order and told Maj. Joyce he was withdrawing all engaged forces from the hill. PFC Makris also witnessed Lt. Sisto cutting off communication with Maj. Joyce.
Because of the disposition of the members of the special assault detail on the hilltop, there are no witnesses to confirm or disprove Lt. Sisto’s statement that he was acting under orders from Col. Porter.
It should be noted that as a consequence of the confusion typical of heavy battle, the statements of some of the witnesses are vague and there is some confusion as to precise actions, statements, and sequences of events. However, they are all in agreement on the substance of the communication between Maj. Joyce and Lt. Sisto which alone justifies recommending action. The open question of possible orders from Col. Porter and Lt. Sisto’s conduct with respect to Maj. Joyce raises issues that can only be settled by a full, formal proceeding.
Recommendation
That 2nd Lt. Dominick V. Sisto be tried for disobedience and the unauthorized withdrawal of forces from battle;
That the case be referred to the Judge Advocate for proper disposition and a formal drawing up of charges on the appropriate grounds supplied by the Articles of War.
*
There were several maps attached to the report covering the area of the operation, as well as a hand–drawn diagram of Hill 399 marked with symbols and notations indicating the disposition a
nd movements of troops, all a manner of cryptography which Harry found indecipherable.
Then there was a memorandum from Captain Leonard T. Courie, Judge Advocate General’s Bureau in Liege, to his immediate superior, Colonel Joseph P. Ryan:
*
Having received advance notice of a case involving a possible capital offense(s) being referred to JAG–Liege, and anticipating the convening authority’s desire to see an expedient handling, I studied the IO’s report, and responded to 28th Div. HQ queries on appropriate disposition and informed the commanding general that a clear prima facie case on capital charges existed. I have taken the liberty of initiating prelim work and drafting charges that will be submitted to you for approval.
For the sake of consistency both in dealing with the case as well as with the convening authority, I request that I be formally assigned as lead Trial Counsel for the duration of the process. Should this not be the case, the convening authority should be apprised ASAP.
*
Harry could almost close his eyes and picture the entire scenario that the few typed lines hinted at, like an old–fashioned cine film in fast motion.
Courie had caught wind of the case even before it was a case. That network of gossiping lips Americans artfully describe as “the grapevine” would have been exhausting themselves with a subject as pungent as what the IO’s report outlined. Once Courie had picked up scent of the incident, he pre–emptively (and here, another spot–on American colloquialism) “hot–footed” his way from Liege to Rott before the JAG office had been officially alerted to the situation; got a peek at the IO’s report; volunteered himself to offer advice and counsel to General Cota and his advisory circle on what to do about the situation and even offered to get the process started. Having insinuated himself into the case, Courie then turned to Ryan, asked for the official appointment to the case, ending with the deftly veiled threat that should Ryan not do so, he could personally explain to General Cota why that very helpful JAG Captain Courie who, incidentally, possessed a record as a bonafide criminal prosecutor, was no longer on the case.
The true measure of Courie’s hunger for the case was indicated by the memorandum’s date of 12 November – the date when the IO would have still been finalizing his report. In Harry’s eyes, Leonard Courie was already shaping up to be as dangerous as Ryan had claimed.
There followed several other memoranda from Ryan informing concerned parties that Dominick Sisto would be subject to court–martial, that Courie would be lead Trial Counsel, and alerting them to the next steps in the process.
And then finally there was the charge sheet with the notation that charges had been served to Dominick Sisto at 0800 hours on 15 November. They hit him right after breakfast, Harry observed.
The charge sheet read:
Charge 1st: Desertion in the face of the enemy in violation of the 58th Article of War.
Specification: In this, that while engaged against the enemy in a leadership role on 11/7/44, and with no authority to do so, Lt. Sisto fled the scene of battle.
Charge 2nd: Demonstrated disrespect toward a superior officer in violation of the 63rd Article of War.
Specification: In this, that Lt. Sisto’s actions and language directed at his immediate commanding officer at a critical time in the fighting on the above date and place represented disrespectful and insubordinate conduct, as did his deliberate ceasing of communications with said commanding officer.
Charge 3rd: Wilfully disobeyed a direct order from a superior officer in
violation of the 64th Article of War.
Specification: In this, that at a critical time in the fighting on the above date and place, Lt. Sisto refused an order to hold his position.
Charge 4th: That he made a mutiny in violation of the 66th Article of War.
Specification: In this, that Lt. Sisto unlawfully assumed command of several companies of his battalion engaged against the enemy and issued orders contrary to those of the lawful military authority.
Charge 5th: Displayed misbehavior before the enemy in violation of the 75th Article of War.
Specification: In this, that Lt. Sisto’s actions at a critical time in the fighting at the above date and place constituted an abandonment of an assigned position.
Charge 6th: Engaged in conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman in violation of the 95th Article of War.
Specification: In this, that Lt. Sisto’s decision to withdraw his unit, to unlawfully assume command of other units, in defiance of clear orders from his superior at a critical point in the fighting at the above date and place, represents a disgrace and discredit to his service and his country.
Charge 7th: Through his actions threatened the good order and military discipline of his unit in violation of the 96th Article of War.
Specification: In this, that Lt. Sisto’s abridgement of the chain of command and command protocols, and his exceeding of his own lawful authority by taking command of other elements of his battalion, and his unauthorized withdrawal from the field of battle, and his conduct toward his superior officer, threatened the effectiveness, cohesion, and safety of the 3bn/103 units engaged against the enemy at the above date and place.
*
Harry dropped his spectacles on the open folder, watched the words turn to a less discomfiting blur. He felt a heaviness in his chest. Oh, Dominick…
You want to feel bad about this? Feel bad later. Work first.
He picked up his reading glasses, again pored over the contents of the file making notes as he went. That completed, he dug into his luggage for his copy of the Manual of Courts–Martial, and his annotated The Articles of War. He flipped his notepad to a fresh sheet of foolscap, poised his pen, opened The Articles of War and began to read.
So enrapt had he been that he was surprised in glancing out the C–47’s windows to find the shimmering Mediterranean replaced by muddy fields sectioned by equally brown strips of road and the wavering gray lines of fieldstone walls, all colors muted under the pall of an overcast sky. There was the occasional sturdy form of a stone barn, the low, huddled shape of a thatched–roof farmhouse. A few black–and–white shapes Harry guessed to be cows, and the puffy smaller shapes of sheep were sometimes sparsely scattered about the otherwise empty countryside. But the houses were intact, the fields churned only by hooves and not the treads of armored vehicles or the wheels of troop lorries. In fact, there was so little sign of human habitation that Harry wondered if the isolated farmhouses were abandoned. There was no war here, the world below seemed left to sheep and cows, and he did not feel that a bad thing.
*
Though the explosion was distant, the window on the other side of the blackout curtain rattled; ripples crossed the surface of their drinks.
Harry was the only one in the pub who seemed to give the disturbance any notice. “What the hell was that?”
Captain Peter Ricks smiled. “The UXB squads have a range out on the plain. It’s where they take the bombs they dig out of London to set them off.” Ricks took a sip from his whisky glass, then a long draught from his pint of ale. Neither seemed to go down well. “They’ll still be digging bombs out of this country when Buck Rogers collects Social Security.”
Harry frowned and sipped his tea. “You look like hell.”
“Gee, Harry, don’t spare my feelings.” Ricks’ laughter was a bitter sound that ended in a raspy cough bred of cigarettes and liquor and sleepless nights.
Sixteen months before, as an officer on the staff of the London Judge Advocate’s Bureau, Peter Ricks presented as very much what he was: the well–bred, well–mannered, well–kept scion of a well–to–do San Franciscan family. Always polite, deferential, tidy, sat so proper and straight one would’ve thought he’d shatter if he’d so much as crossed his legs. Ironically, he had the stout build of a boxer; ironic in that it would never have occurred to Peter Ricks to raise a hand in anger or even in self–defense for fear of appearing rude.
But when Harry next saw him fou
r months later Peter Ricks had become a different man. The months fighting in Italy had given him a combat veteran’s slouch, and a wry disdain for the protocols and proprieties that seemed so inane measured against the blood and mud of the front lines.
And now here a year later and Peter Ricks had evolved into still another person. The slouch had gone from the casual to the careless; liquor had thickened and aged the young man’s now weathered features. There was a new unkemptness to him in his rumpled uniform, his once short brush–cut hair now a barely combed mop. This new air of – not collapse – erosion all seemed to radiate from a single point: the hook.
From his left cuff, the sleeve stained with something sopped up from the pub table, there came the leather sheath that fitted about the stump, and from that base came the shining steel hook. Actually, there were two hooks side by side to form one, the gap between them adjustable, allowing Peter Ricks to grasp and hold. It was an ingenious if somewhat unattractive contraption.
“Why didn’t they send you home?”
Ricks idly scratched at the scuffed surface of the booth table with the hook. “They tried. I persuaded them I could still perform a useful function.”
“And what useful function is that?”
Ricks fumbled in his breast pocket for a packet of cigarettes. “That training cadre back in the States doesn’t have any more combat experience than the kids they’re sending over here. You should see some of the training films these kids sit through. I saw one that’s supposed to show how all the elements of an infantry regiment work together. The artillery support is all on target, the rifle companies fire–and–move like they’re on ball bearings. The enemy sends in tanks, the bazooka teams run up and pick them off pop–pop–pop. Well, I don’t know what war that’s supposed to be, ‘cause it’s not the one I’ve been in.
“You go up against a Panther with a bazooka, all you’ll do is piss it off. They tell the recruits maybe you heard about those kraut machine guns. ‘Yeah,’ they say, ‘the MG 42 puts out a lot of lead, but don’t let it spook you; it’s bark is worse than its bite.’ They actually said that: ‘It’s bark is worse than its bite.’” Peter Ricks held up his hook, twisted it slowly to let the low lights of the pub catch the smooth, steel crescents. “My useful function? I tell them the krauts got a full set of teeth. They bite as bad as they bark.”