FORT BRAGG, NC – 82nd Airborne paratrooper Pfc. Richard Ashley pleaded guilty in military court Thursday to charges of sodomy, conduct detrimental to the Army, and drug use. The “conduct” in question was Ashley’s performance in two pornographic videos made for the site ActiveDuty.com.“I’ve embarrassed the entire Army, my country and most of all, dishonored God,” Ashley said during his sentencing hearing.
Judge Col. Grant Jaquith sentenced Ashley to 90 days in jail, with 15 days credit for time already served, and a bad conduct discharge to be carried out at the end of Ashley’s sentence. The judge said that Ashley has been demoted to private and will lose two-thirds of his pay.
Ashley was originally charged with pandering as well, but prosecutors dropped the pandering charge after Ashley agreed to plea guilty to the sodomy and conduct charges, as well as a newly added drug use charge.
During testimony, Ashley said he received $500 for the first video, which included a woman and several other soldiers from the 82nd Airborne, and $2,000 for the second video, which included only Ashley and another soldier.
When Judge Jaquith asked why he was guilty of the charges, Ashley replied “Because soldiers having sex on camera for money, homosexual, bisexual, made the unit look bad, sir, and the public saw it on the news. It lowered the esteem of the public toward the military.”
Ashley was one of seven members of the 82nd Airborne to face charges connected to appearing on ActiveDuty.com; Pfc. Wesley Mitten and Pvt. Kagen Mullen both were charged with the same sodomy, pandering, and conduct offenses that Ashley faced, and Mullen was charged with adultery, as well. Mitten and Mullen have both pleaded not guilty.
Four other soldiers, whose names have not been released, received nonjudicial punishment for appearing on the site, according to officials from the 82nd Airborne.
The four soldiers had their rank reduced to private, were docked 50-percent of their pay for two months, performed added work, and were restricted to Fort Bragg for 45 days.
The military’s so-called “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy states that “homosexual orientation alone is not a bar to service, but homosexual conduct is incompatible with military service.”
