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Dr. John Buck
Air Force Balks At Buck Resignation; Anthrax Trial Continues
May 21, 2001
Dave Eberhart
Stars and Stripes News Editor
Air Force doctor Capt. John Buck, on trial at Keesler Air Force
Base, Miss., for refusing an order to take the military's mandatory
anthrax shots, faces denial of a request to resign from the service
he made last week after losing a bid to have the order declared
unlawful.
Lt. Col. Mark Allred, the military judge, May 18 agreed to a defense
request for a continuance in the trial until today, when a jury
of military officers is to hear evidence on a single count of
failure to obey a lawful order.
Chris Antoon of Pascagoula, Miss., faxed a petition to Sen. Trent
Lott, R-Miss., May 18 bearing the signatures of some 100 citizens
opposed to Buck's court-martial.
"It was easy," said Antoon. "I went into an insurance
company and a bank to ask one friend at each business to sign
the petition, and everybody wanted to sign."
The petition asks that Lott request Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld
or the acting Air Force secretary to allow Buck to resign.
"Dr. Buck stood on principle," Lott said last week.
We are gratified by the outpouring of support from local citizens, and we hope that Air Force leaders choose to do what is in both the best interests of the Air Force and Capt. Buck and allow him to resign.
Defense Counsel Spinner
Frank Spinner, Buck's attorney, said, "We are gratified
by the outpouring of support from local citizens, and we hope
that Air Force leaders choose to do what is in both the best interests
of the Air Force and Capt. Buck and allow him to resign."
During four days of pre-trial hearing last week, Spinner introduced
Pentagon documents generated during a 1999 congressional probe
of the anthrax vaccination program which indicated that military
officials were struggling to frame answers to questions about
the legality of the vaccine.
Medical Histories
Buck told The Stars and Stripes in his practice at Keesler
AFB, he has seen case after case of harm done by the controversial
vaccine. The medical history is always the same, he says: A patient
showing no symptoms before the shot series would experience serious
symptoms afterward, including chronic fatigue, thyroid disorders
and faulty autoimmune functioning.
"Not long before I was ordered to commence the series, a
fellow officer and friend told me gratuitously: 'Whatever you
do, don't take that vaccine,'" Buck said. His friend, after
completing the series, "went from the top 10 percent of the
physically fit to someone who could barely get out of bed in the
morning," Buck said.
But why risk a criminal conviction?
"I'm doing this for the men and women in the service," Buck said. "I had no interest in getting embroiled in this. Typically, those who were refusing the vaccine were being punished...and were receiving forfeiture of half their base pay each month-through to the end of their tours."
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Last revised: March 2004