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 | Staff Sgt. Camilo Mejia, right, and his attorney Louis Font prepare to speak to reporters Wednesday, May 19, 2004, during a news conference in Fort Stewart, Ga., after the first day of his court-martial. Mejia, 28, is charged with desertion after failing to return to his unit in Iraq after a two-week furlough in October. click to open  |  | Staff Sgt. Camilo Mejia, an infantry squad leader with the Florida National Guard, is shown in this photo provided by his family, taken while Mejia was on active duty in Iraq, no date provided. Mejia was sentenced Friday, May 21, 2004, to a year in jail and a bad conduct discharge after a military jury in Georgia found him guilty of desertion for leaving his combat unit in Iraq in protest of what he called ``oil-driven'' war. click to open |  | Army Staff Sgt. Camilo Mejia, center, is surrounded by his aunt Norma Castillo, left, and his mother Martiza Castillo as he prepares to speak to reporters Wednesday, May 19, 2004, during a news conference in Fort Stewart, Ga., after the first day of his court marshal trail. Mejia is accused of deserting his unit in Iraq. Mejia's defense team asked a military judge Wednesday to dismiss the charge, saying the infantryman was exempt from serving under a 19th century treaty with Costa Rica. The judge refused the request. click to open |  | Staff Sgt. Camilo Mejia, an infantry squad leader with the Florida National Guard, is shown in this photo provided by his family, taken while Mejia was on active duty in Iraq, no date provided. Mejia was sentenced Friday, May 21, 2004, to a year in jail and a bad conduct discharge after a military jury in Georgia found him guilty of desertion for leaving his combat unit in Iraq in protest of what he called ``oil-driven'' war. click to open |
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