Reasons why Eddie Slovik was executed for desertion during World War II while other deserter's sentences were reduced

Reasons why Eddie Slovik was executed for desertion during World War II while other deserter's sentences were reduced

Why was Eddie Slovik executed for desertion during World War ll while other deserter's sentences were reduced?  while watching the American Heroes Channe,  I heard about Norman Cota and went to Wikipedia to learn more.

I came across Eddie Slovik, who | learned was a World War Il deserter through links from Cota's page. As I was readingl I came across this:

Colonel Robert C. Bard of the judge advocates general's office noted that of the 2,864 army personnel tried for

desertion for the period January 1942 through June 1948, 49 were convicted and sentenced to death, and 48 of those sentences were voided by higher authority.

Norman Cota approved the death sentence, and Slovik later, I wrote Eisenhower a letter. Eisenhower confirmed the execution citing the necessity of discouraging other deserters.

So why was only Slovik chosen to be executed? There were 48 other instances of desertion in which the death sentences were voided, which made the higher command follow through with Slovik's execution?

Slovik's case was reviewed several times, firstly by an Assistant Staff Judge Advocate to guide Eisenhower's final decision on clemency for Slovik: 

There can be no doubt he deliberately decided that confinement was preferable to the risks of comba  and that he deliberately sought the comparative comfort of the guardhouse.

To him and those soldiers who might follow his example, if he achieves his end, confinement is neither deterrentnor punishment. He has directly challenged the authority of the government, and future discipline depends upon a resolute reply to this challenge.

If the death penalty is ever to be applied to desertion it should be imposed in this case, not as a punitive measure or retribution, but to maintain that discipline upon which an army can succeed against the enemy. There was no recommendation for clemency in this case, and none is here recommended And Finally, by the head of the Paris JAG (Judge Advocate General):

This is the first death sentence that has reached me for examination. It is probably the first of the kind in the American army for over eighty years - there were none in WWI. In this case, the extreme penalty of death appears warranted. This soldier had performed no front-line duty. He did not intend to. He deserted from his group of fifteen when about to join the infantry company to which he had been assigned.

His subsequent conduct shows a deliberate plan to secure trial and incarceration in a safe place. The sentence adjudged was more severe than he had anticipated, but the imposition of a less severe sentence would only have accomplished the accused's purpose of securing his incarceration and consequent freedom from the dangers which so many of our armed forces are required to face daily. His unfavourable civilian record indicates that he is not a worthy subject of clemency.

By all appearances, Slovik had a fairly brazen plan to avoid combat by getting himself incarcerated for the remaining duration of the war. The army decided that this scheme, if successful, would set an unwelcome precedent for other soldiers to follow if they wished to escape dangerous duties.

JAG lawyers reviewing the case also took account of Slovik's civilian criminal record (though the court martial did not) when determining his suitability for clemency on behalf of Eisenhower (the guy was pretty busy...), indicating that Slovik's past misdeeds (which included multiple custodial sentences and parole violations):

indicate a persistent refusal to conform to the rules of society in civilian life, an imperviousness to penal correction, and a total lack of appreciation for clemency

So, at least in part, Slovik's past caught up with him - the army had actually classed him as unsuitable for the draft at the outbreak of war, due to his incorrigible criminality (and obviously no small amount of stupidity, if I may be frank), but he was reclassified late in the war and called up - probably as a result of a relaxation of standards due to manpower shortages. 

Slovik could have dodged the bullet a number of times, and it's apparent that he did not realize the mortal danger he was in until it was effectively too late. His confession was very foolish, primarily because it demonstrated lucidity of thought, premeditation, lack of remorse, and worst of all, contained a threat to repeat the offending - one can admire his earnestness... but boy, was that kid dumb. In a legal sense he really forced their hand, all the way up the chain, authority figures urged him to destroy his provocative confession note, and when it was too late for that, offered to ignore the whole thing if he rejoined his unit. Slovik stuck to his scheme, and the army declined to blink - he made it into a question of: can a soldier simply decline to fight when he pleases? The process was by no means arbitrary if Slovik had done anything differently (i.e., can the fucking note) his fate most likely would have been similar to many thousands of other deserters/AWOL soldiers.