NASA fires astronaut Nowak

[lanlady]

HOUSTON, Texas (CNN) -- U.S. Navy Capt. Lisa Nowak's detail as a NASA astronaut will be terminated, effective Thursday, NASA and the U.S. Navy said Wednesday in a written statement issued jointly.

NASA spokesman James Hartsfield said that while it wasn't unusual for astronauts to leave the astronaut corps and return to the military, it was the first time the space agency had requested that the military terminate an assignment.

Hartsfield said Nowak was informed about the request for termination on February 24 by chief astronaut Steve Reynolds but that processing the request took until this week.

Nowak, 43, is charged with attempted kidnapping for allegedly confronting her former boyfriend's new love-interest in a parking lot at Florida's Orlando International Airport on February 5.

In addition to attempted kidnapping, Nowak was charged with battery and burglary of a vehicle with a weapon...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/space/03/07/nasa.nowak/index.html

[realisticphish]

1. I'm not exactly surprised

Frankly, who would want her on a mission with them?

[MGKrebs]

2. That's actually kind of sad.

Hopefully, her health care situation isn't affected, she may need some help.

[kestrel91316]

3. Nah. She'll probably be courtmartialed for conduct unbecoming an

officer, and thrown out of her branch of the service without benefits. Watch her turn up homeless within 5 years.

She's about to find out what America likes to do to its tarnished heroes.

[Psephos]

6. A gentle reminder: she attacked the other woman with chemicals and wanted to do worse

That's felony assault. She may have had intention to kidnap or even kill her.

She's not a tarnished hero...she's a violent person who planned her assault in detail. The disguises show she wanted to escape the consequences. But actions like this should and do have consequences.

I personally hope she is not treated harshly by the law, but...no one can deny she is the author of her own tragedy here.

Peace.

[DemBones DemBones]

8. I think she suffers from mental illness, specifically

bipolar disorder. It's entirely possible that she never had anything but mild mood swings in the past but the emotional turmoil and stress of this love triangle and separating from her husband pushed her into a full-blown manic state. It's a shame no one saw what was going on and got her some help. Few people are able to realize for themselves when they need psychiatric help.

That's not to say she shouldn't be tried for assault, though I have never heard what chemical she sprayed into the woman's car or whether the woman was harmed in any way. Do you know?

[MADem]

12. She attacked the woman with pepper spray. Just because people are mentally deranged doesn't mean

they don't have vicious intent to do harm. She had an ELABORATE, though halfassed plan that included a bb gun, a steel mallet, a knife, rubber tubing and plastic garbage bags:

On February 5, 2007, Nowak was arrested at Orlando International Airport on charges of attempted kidnapping, battery, attempted vehicle burglary with battery, and destruction of evidence. The Orlando Police Department says she told investigators she was involved in a relationship with fellow astronaut William Oefelein, with whom she trained, which she described as being "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship."<9> U.S. Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman, who works as an engineer at Patrick Air Force Base,<10> was involved with Oefelein, who had recently broken off a two-year romantic relationship with Nowak.<11><12> In a handwritten request for a protective order against Nowak after her arrest, Shipman referred to Nowak as "acquaintance of boyfriend" but did not identify Oefelein and also claimed Nowak had been stalking her for two months.<13> Shipman dropped her request for a protection order on February 15.<14>

Arrest
According to police reports, Shipman said that upon arriving on a flight from Houston, she was aware of someone following her to a satellite parking area. When she got into her car, she heard running steps and quickly locked the door. A woman, later identified as Nowak, slapped the window and tried to open the car door, asked for a ride, then started crying. Shipman rolled down the window a couple of inches and Nowak allegedly sprayed pepper spray into the car. Shipman drove off to the parking lot booth where police were summoned.<15>

The first police officer to arrive saw Nowak throw a bag containing a wig and a BB pistol into the trash at a parking shuttle bus stop. She was arrested after Shipman positively identified her. The Orlando Police said Nowak had disguised herself during the assault by wearing a hooded tan trench coat and black wig and, along with the BB gun, was carrying a four-inch folding buck knife, a new steel mallet, black gloves, rubber tubing, plastic garbage bags and about US$600 in cash. In her statement to police, Nowak said she wanted to talk to Shipman and discuss their relationships with Oefelein. When asked if she thought the pepper spray was going to help her talking with Shipman, she replied, "That was stupid." During a search of Nowak's car parked at a motel, the police found a letter written by Nowak which they said "indicated how much Mrs. Nowak loved Mr. Oefelein," along with latex gloves, opened packages for both a buck knife and pepper spray, an unused BB cartridge, handwritten directions to Shipman's house, copies of e-mails from Shipman to Oefelein, and diapers. <16> The astronaut explained she had used the latter during the 900-mile (1400-km) drive from her home in Houston, Texas to Orlando, so she did not have to stop to urinate (U.S. shuttle astronauts wear specially designed diapers during launch and re-entry).<17> They also found receipts indicating Nowak paid only in cash during her trip from Houston, including for her hotel stay.<18> Citing evidence of elaborate planning, disguises and weapons, police recommended she be held without bail.<12>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_Nowak

[ProudDad]

38. Sorry, you're mixing your religious

fables in a civil matter:

vicious adj. Having the nature of vice; evil, immoral, or depraved. Given to vice, immorality, or depravity.

[MADem]

42. Not at all. Vicious, defined

--barbarous: (of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering; "a barbarous crime"; "brutal beatings"; "cruel tortures"; "Stalin's roughshod treatment of the kulaks"; "a savage slap"; "vicious kicks"
--evil: having the nature of vice
--condemnable: bringing or deserving severe rebuke or censure; "a criminal waste of talent"; "a deplorable act of violence"; "adultery is as reprehensible for a husband as for a wife"
--poisonous: marked by deep ill will; deliberately harmful; "poisonous hate"; "venomous criticism"; "vicious gossip"
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

You might ask for a dictionary for Christmas!

[AngryAmish]

16. The world needs you

You can diagnose mental illness just from reading newspaper articles. Do you realize what a boon to mankind that is? For all these years folks have been trudging all the way to their psychiatrists (like suckers) and sitting down and discussing their problems. You have solved that problem. Now all folks have to do is have an untrained third party journalist write down descriptions of your behavior then submit them to you and you can diagnose their condition from afar. You could probably do five an hour - and no need for fancy examinations or such.

It is great to know that we have members of DU who are in a better situation to know these things than the judge who could order a psychological evaluation or her own lawyer. We are truly blessed.

Do not be bashful - the world needs you.

[DemBones DemBones]

40. The world needs you to

channel your anger somewhere else.

I very clearly said "I think she suffers from mental illness, specifically bipolar disorder."

I did not say "She suffers from mental illness."

I offered an opinion based on my knowledge of people who have bipolar disorder. Her behavior seems to fit the diagnostic criteria.

Many people have opined that * suffers from narcissistic personality disorder, based only on what is public knowledge of his behavior.

[kestrel91316]

21. I never said she wasn't an apparently violent person. There may very

well be some private psychological issues with her.

Also, she hasn't been convicted of anything yet.

My point was that in America, when people in the public eye fall from grace, sometimes it seems to me that they get kicked around unnecessarily for good measure once they land.

No one died. No one was even hurt. I seriously doubt she was capable of killing, or even intended to kill. I think she went nuts and lost all sense of perspective and good judgement.

What's sad for us as a society is that a poor person or minority who did the exact same thing WOULD ultimately wind up on the street, their life in permanent ruins, because of a single crime of the same magnitude.

[Blue_Tires]

9. homeless? no chance

you just know there is a tawdry, semi-true book and movie coming out about this sometime...the book rights alone will probably be in the millions

[kestrel91316]

22. Hm. I thought criminals weren't allowed to make money from telling their story anymore.

And that any money generated had to go to their victims...........

[MADem]

11. That is just SO not true. It's so inaccurate, it's not even funny.

She has over 20, so her retirement is safe. (She graduated from the Academy in 85).

Even if she was courts-martialled, she'd be able to retire at the rank where she last served honorably, which is 0-5. That will give her enough to live on, not glamorously, but she won't starve. She will also get TRICARE, she can opt for PRIME at a monthly dedictible, or take STANDARD and pay some of the bills herself.

Nothing will happen to her until her civil case is finished. Because she has charges pending, she is not a candidate for a permanent reassignment, so she'll be stuck somewhere in TAD status.

After her civilian trial is done, unless she opts, and is permitted, to retire sooner under her own steam (a smart idea if they will let her get away with it, with a shot at keeping that rank), and assuming she gets a guilty verdict, they'll probably take her to Admiral's Mast, reduce her a rank and a shitload of lineal numbers, fine her heavily, give her a letter of reprimand and leave it at that. They'll probably suspend the fine if she drops her letter of resignation toute suite.

If you have enough time in to retire, even if you fuck up, you still keep the pension, though you might lose a paygrade. Duke Cunningham's pension is probably making life much easier for him than it might have otherwise been in the slammer...

[Springster]

15. No, if found guilty in a court martial, retirement is not a right

If the possible punishments include dismissal from the service (officer/cadet/midshipman) equivalent of a dishonorable dicharge and forfiture of all pay and allowances, then she receives nothing from the government but a ticket back to her home of record. This with dismissal/dishonorable discharge also lose almost all VA benefits.

If the Navy wants this to go away with as little further publicity as possible, they will skip the court martial and involuntarily retire her. Her lawyer would jump at such an offer. There also is no guarantee that she would retire as a Captain, O-6, since there is indication of less than satisfactory performance in that rank. Several years ago, the AF retired its chief lawyer and bumped him down from two-star to colonel on the basis that that was the last rank in which he had satisfactory performance. (It was a sex with subordinates case.)

[MADem]

27. NO, you are wrong. DEAD wrong.

She has already EARNED her retirement. She earned it BEFORE her conduct became "unbecoming." Once you hit twenty, you're eligible for retirement pay. They will NOT take that away from her. She isn't a cadet. she is a SENIOR OFFICER in the USN. She has been on active duty for 22 years, and 26 years for pay purposes. She entered the academy in 81, that's when her longevity clock starts ticking. You don't know what you are talking about.

I've seen 0-6s who screwed dozens of subordinates and ran ships aground who were allowed to retire. I've seen 0-7s and up who have done the same and worse who walked with their pensions, minus a paygrade.

Look, I've seen this process played out dozens and dozens of times. My prediction is Admiral's Mast and a quiet retirement at paygrade 0-5, and maybe even 0-6 depending on her promotion date. If she has three years as an 0-6 prior to any proof that she screwed around as a married woman with a married guy, she just may get the 0-6 bundle, though that's a long shot. Odds are, though, she started this mess around or just after she made Captain. If it's determined that she's nuts, and that's likely, she can even get disability retirement, because this would clearly fall under the 'service connected' disability umbrella--there's no way they'd ever try to argue her mental instability was a pre-existing condition, because that would mean that the Navy AND NASA don't screen their astronaut candidates fer shit.

The only circumstance that could reasonably impede her getting a retirement is if she violated the Hiss Act (National Security--like say, selling secrets to Bin Ladin) and it is plain from her conduct that this is not the case.

Here, read up on a few of the more egregious cases in my memory:

http://www.cnn.com/US/9907/14/army.general.sex/

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2005/11/30/news/top_stories/20_57_3111_29_05.txt

There are murderers in prison getting military retirement. She didn't kill anyone, and she's crazy as a loon, to boot.

[northzax]

30. but the very article you posted

had the punishment being a reduction in retirement pay. Doesn't that counteract your very arguement?

[MADem]

34. NO. Not at all. That is a ONE TIME FINE. Three months forfeiture, to be precise.

That isn't LOSING pay. That's like a parking ticket, a form of punishment. Not the same thing at all. Sometimes those forfeitures are suspended, sometimes not.

After that forfeiture is extracted, the punishment completed, the individual gets a check on the first of the month, every month, for a lifetime.

The discussion point here was the complete loss of retirement pay, that which some people erroneously refer to as a pension. I am averring that this will not happen to this woman. She'll get a check every month after she leaves service until the day she dies.

[northzax]

36. does this sound temporary?

Such a post-retirement reduction in rank to brigadier general would mean that Hale's retirement pay would be reduced by about $750 per month. He currently receives $6,250 per month in retirement pay, according to Army officials who spoke on the condition that they not be named.

[MADem]

41. If you bothered to read what I wrote, you would see that that I discussed

retirement at the last grade at which the astronaut served HONORABLY. That is standard. But once that reduction is taken (and in this situation, the astronaut would still be ON ACTIVE DUTY when the reduction is taken--not retired--the admiral's mast or CM happens on ACDU) the retirement pay is paid at that paygrade.

Also, Hale (the case you cite so portentiously) is an EXCEPTION to the rule with regard to punishment for another reason. He's a RARITY because they actually dragged him back from RETIREMENT to face charges. Guess how often they've done that since then? NEVER. Guess how often they did it before him? NEVER. And the only reason he got bagged is because Claudia Kennedy brought up his touchy, feely close-talking habits. And then the shit hit the fan. And then other cases came to the fore, and his was revisited. http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/05/11/army.sex/

Had he been bagged for his crimes on active duty, AS HE SHOULD HAVE, the reduction in rank would have occurred then. The problem with him is that the Army let him slide out the door and didn't punish him, because he had friends in the office of the Army COS. But around that time, they punished a bunch of enlisted guys (the Aberdeen case, the McKinney case), and way too many people started complaining about the double standard. Hale was the poster boy for this sort of situation, and he was made an example so the DoD could say they were treating everyone the same. Had they bagged him on ACDU for all that he did, he would have done jail time. He had a brilliant lawyer, too, one of the best in the business, who successfully pled for a shitload of guilty pleas in EXCHANGE FOR lenient sentencing.

See: http://www.cnn.com/US/9903/16/army.hale.02/index.html?eref=sitesearch#5

The case you cite is not the norm. Once the servicemember is punished on active duty, that's the END of it. And Major General Hale did NOT lose his retirement pay. He was simply reduced to the rank at which he last served HONORABLY, and his retirement pay reflected THAT rank.

[kestrel91316]

23. Thank you. Obviously you know WAAYYYY more than I do about this

(which is why I was only speculating).

At least she isn't facing a life in absolute tatters, considering nobody was actually hurt. Her personal life is now a mess, but there's no need to DESTROY her over this sordid affair, IMHO.

I'm still shaking my head over the diaper. 900 miles with no diaper change???

[Psephos]

24. Here's what I don't understand about the diaper...

She was wearing the diaper so she wouldn't have to stop. But how does her car travel 900 miles without refueling? That sounds like three refueling stops to me.

Something wrong with the motherboard there...

I do agree with you, btw, that there's no need for anyone else to destroy her; she's done that quite well all by herself.

[michaelwb]

25. Say what?

"She was wearing the diaper so she wouldn't have to stop. But how does her car travel 900 miles without refueling? That sounds like three refueling stops to me."

Gas station restrooms?!? And you think she's crazy. ;-)

[Psephos]

26. LOL n/t

[northzax]

32. gas stations have video cameras

if you stay in the car, and do full serve, you are never on film.

[MADem]

28. Odds are that she'll get a bit under forty grand a year. More if she applies for, and gets,

disability (that may not be so swift, though, if she has kids--but if her husband is military, it might be just the ticket--the rules are kind of complex in terms of family medical benefits--and of course, the delay in getting disability benefits is absurd. In any event, she'll get retired pay).

If she's smart, and I imagine she's getting decent legal advice, she'd first get some serious, documented mental health treatment, which not only will help in her civilian trial but might help with her military woes as well. She'll have tons of time to see shrinks and take meds before she goes to court. She should line up her character witnesses (and she was a CACO for the family of an astronaut that died in the last accident) thus I am guessing she'll be able to find a few folks to say nice things about her.

Her lawyer will no doubt push for probation, and if she comes off as sympathetic enough (and the fact that the studly Commander was screwing BOTH the older 0-6 and the comely young USAF 0-3 will probably help her in that regard) she'll likely get it. If her ex-husband can be persuaded to testify on her behalf (hey, if she's well medicated and can take care of the kids, I'm guessing he will do that, or be stuck as Mister Mom) that's a BIG help. Who knows, with the passage of time, it may come down to her pleading guilty to a set of charges, agreeing to stay away from the USAF lady forever, apologizing, getting mental health treatment as a condition of her sentence, and walking away from the whole thing with a probation and court costs and NO TRIAL at all. It doesn't do a prosecutor any good to put an astronaut, especially a plainly crazy one, up on the stand in a public display, or in jail, it just doesn't.

I see Admiral's Mast in her future. That's a quiet little meeting in the Admiral's Office, like an ART 15 for other services, or Captain's Mast for the lower ranks. She'll walk in, stand at attention if the Admiral wants to be a hard ass (or sit across from him or her at a desk if he or she is less formal and more matter of fact about these things) and the Admiral will tell her what she did wrong, allow her to speak her peace, and then give her a punishment that won't mess with her retirement but will ensure that her career is dead in the water, and might cost her a few thousand dollars. She can accept the punishment (the smart move) or demand a courts-martial (a stupid move). If she accepts it, it's a simple matter of signing a few documents, swallowing a bit of humiliation and moving on with her life. If I were her, I'd change my name, frankly, so long as she has a lawyer on retainer--it's just one more thing to do. It might make her life a bit easier downstream...!

[lanlady]

4. I feel bad for her

Love can mess up your mind.

[saigon68]

5. Oops

[ShockediSay]

7. Innocent until proven guilty?

Or is it the other way around in the military?

I honestly don't know.

[MADem]

13. They won't touch her until the civil trial is over. She'll be in limbo until then.

Unless they allow her to resign ahead of resolution of her case, but that might be perceived as a dicey move.

She will get a retirement. She has the time in, and she served honorably up to this lunacy, as near as anyone can tell.

[northzax]

18. if you are convicted of misconduct

not simply poor performance or negligence, you lose your pension. the taxpayers frown on such things.

[MADem]

29. No, you don't. That is a common misconception. But it isn't true.

Look upthread at the links I have provided.

You only lose your opportunity to receive retired pay if you HAVE NOT YET completed sufficient service, honorably, to be eligible for the pay.

She's got 26 years for pay purposes, and 21 on acdu. She's OVER the hump already.

[northzax]

31. I said she 'can' lose her pension

not that she would. And that was a direct quote from a friend who makes her living as a civilian defense lawyer on courts martial.

[MADem]

33. You're saying she violated the Hiss Act, then, because that is the only way she "can" lose it

And plainly, her conduct doesn't even approach Hiss Act violations. She's exhibiting behavior that suggests that she is mentally ill, and she has enough good time to retire.

Any lawyer who would say that she CAN lose her pension based on the particulars of this case is not one I'd recommend anyone hire if they needed a civilian attorney at a courts martial.

[Rene]

10. They better fire the 'boyfriend' also.....a married man sheesh!

Using NASA computers for the xrated email should be a firing offense. An immoral man...not suited for NASA's image.

[MADem]

14. He was the JUNIOR in the relationship--the responsibility rests with the senior.

And they were both married--that's the kiss of death, even if he was legally separated, they just don't care when they're trying to make a point. His career is over, so is the USAF 0-3s, and this gal's is, of course, total toast.

A love note e-mailed to an orbiting space shuttle was one of the ways NASA astronaut Lisa Nowak learned she had a rival for astronaut Bill Oefelein's affections.

Considered unemotional and shy, Nowak collected that e-mail and a dozen others showing her boyfriend had a new lover before she went on a bizarre, 969-mile odyssey last month to confront the woman in a parking lot at Orlando International Airport, according to documents released Monday.

"First urge will be to rip your clothes off," reads one of the notes from Air Force Capt. Colleen Shipman to Oefelein while he was aboard shuttle Discovery in December. "But honestly, love, I want you to totally and thoroughly enjoy your hero's homecoming."

The messages and other documents were released late Monday by the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office, which on Friday charged Nowak with attempted kidnapping and burglary with assault, which could put her in prison for life.

The nature of Nowak's relationship with Oefelein had been uncertain since her arrest. She told detectives at the time it was "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship." However, Oefelein told investigators they had been romantically involved since 2004, a year before he divorced and while Nowak was having marital problems.


http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/custom/space/orl-bk-nowak-020607,0,6971241,print.story?coll=orl-home-headlines

[Show_Me _The_Truth]

19. Its all IMAGE

Talk to some old Navy guys and AF guys involved in the program, not necessarily astronauts themselves and you will see that ALL of these guys including the first 7 American Heros had something on the side. It was just kept quite back then.

Hell, when this first broke, a former astronaut came out and said that the astronaut community was notorious for love affairs and such.

They are all just men and women like the rest of us.

[MADem]

35. The rules have changed. Review the TAILHOOK and ABERDEEN

scandals, to say nothing of the USAF ACADEMY sexual assault scandal of recent years.

There's regular TRAINING on proper conduct, reporting requirements, and do's and dont's. It's mandated. It's a graded aspect of one's fitness reports. And no one can claim they didn't know the rules.

[PassingFair]

17. Wow. I was wrong.

I thought the whole thing was all in her mind.

I wonder if Astro-Boy knew she had a screw loose....

[Felix Mala]

20. Fox news can now spend a week on this instead of White House crimes

[ProudDad]

37. This is the best commentary on this kind of thing

Ferguson Speaks From The Heart

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bbaRyDLMvA

[colorado_ufo]

39. This guy Oefelein "ain't all that."

He seems to go from one woman to the next with no thought or conscience about how he has destroyed lives. Must be quite a charmer, to convince these women that each of them is "the one."

If anything good comes out of this pathetic tale, I hope it is that women now know and will remember his name and never give him the chance to ruin another life with his lies, irresponsibility, and cavalier attitude. However, this probably won't happen - it won't be long before he gets bored, dumps the girlfriend he is with now, and looks to prey on another. Men like him can find a weakness in the armor of even an immensely intelligent, accomplished, and educated woman like Nowak.

The man defines the word "jerk."