Did General Byrnes Prejudice Good Order and Discipline?
Nonetheless, General Byrnes appears to have a good defense to charges under paragraph 62. That paragraph requires not only that a married member of the armed forces had sexual intercourse with someone other than his spouse, but also “[t]hat, under the circumstances, the conduct of the accused was to the prejudice of good order and discipline in the armed forces or was of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.” It is easy to see how an officer who conducted an extramarital affair with one of his subordinates might thereby prejudice “good order and discipline.” Quite apart from the adulterous nature of the conduct, such behavior, even if mutually consensual, could suggest to other subordinates that the leader is playing favorites, or that the way to get ahead in the unit is to sleep with the commander. For reasons such as these, many non-military organizations either prohibit or discourage such “vertical” romantic relationships among their personnel. Yet this abuse-of-power r
