Chapter 9 - The Verdict
Michael Ward's conviction was not the end of the case.
It was the beginning of a second case.
On the tenth of April — three weeks after the conviction — Colonel Henry Ward was charged by the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California with misprision of a felony, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 4. The charge alleged that Colonel Ward, knowing that his son had committed theft of government property, had concealed that theft from federal investigators, had ordered subordinates to destroy records that would have documented the theft, and had personally accepted approximately 90,000 dollars from his son as his share of the proceeds of the theft.
Misprision of a felony is a lesser offense than the underlying felony. It carries a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison and a fine of up to 250,000 dollars. The maximum is almost never imposed. First-time offenders who cooperate with the government, who accept responsibility, and who testify against other defendants, are typically sentenced to probation or to a short period of home confinement.
Colonel Ward was represented by a federal public defender named Marcus Reyes.
Reyes met with Ward on the eleventh of April.
"Colonel Ward," Reyes said, "I want to tell you what your options are. You can go to trial. If you go to trial, the government is going to call your son. Your son has already been convicted and sentenced. He has nothing to lose. He is going to testify against you. He is going to tell the jury that you knew about the thefts for three years. He is going to tell the jury that you accepted 90,000 dollars in cash. He is going to tell the jury that you ordered Major Hargrove to destroy the records. And he is going to tell the jury that he is your son. And then the jury is going to look at you and they are going to see a colonel who covered for his son's crimes at the expense of the families of Sacramento. And they are going to convict you. And the judge is going to sentence you. And you are going to go to federal prison. And you are going to be in federal prison for five years, maybe more, because you are not going to get the benefit of a cooperation agreement."
Ward did not say anything.
"Your other option," Reyes said, "is to accept a plea agreement. The government is offering you misprision of a felony. In exchange, you will enter a plea of guilty, you will cooperate fully with the government, you will testify against Major Hargrove and against any other officer who was involved in covering up your son's thefts, and you will accept responsibility for your conduct at your sentencing. If you do that, the government will recommend a sentence of 18 months of home confinement and 300 hours of community service. You will be reduced in rank from colonel to lieutenant colonel. You will forfeit your retirement benefits. You will be dismissed from the California National Guard. But you will not go to federal prison. You will serve your sentence at home. You will be able to see your grandchildren. You will be able to be with your wife."
Ward was quiet for a long time.
"Mr. Reyes," he said, "if I accept the plea, will I have to testify against my son?"
"Your son has already been convicted and sentenced. You will not need to testify against him. You will need to testify against Major Hargrove, who was involved in the cover-up."
"Hargrove was a good officer. He was following my orders."
"He was following your orders to destroy evidence of a federal crime. That is not following orders. That is conspiracy. And I am going to tell you something, Colonel. Hargrove is going to be prosecuted whether you testify against him or not. The government has the records. The government has the testimony of Captain Mills. The government has the memorandum that Hargrove wrote on your instruction. The government has enough to convict Hargrove without you. But if you testify, Hargrove will be convicted faster and the government will be able to close the case sooner. And Hargrove will receive a lighter sentence because he will be convicted on a lesser charge. That is the bargain the government is offering you. Not a bargain for your benefit. A bargain for the benefit of Major Hargrove, who is going to be prosecuted either way."
Ward was quiet for a long time.
"Mr. Reyes," he said, "I want to accept the plea."
"Then I will notify the court."
—
Colonel Henry Ward entered his plea of guilty to misprision of a felony on the twenty-fifth of April.
He testified against Major Thomas Hargrove before a federal grand jury on the fifteenth of May. He testified before the grand jury for four hours. He described the three years during which he had known about his son's thefts. He described the three phone calls from Captain Mills. He described the three memoranda. He described the 90,000 dollars in cash.
Major Hargrove was indicted on the twentieth of May. He was charged with obstruction of justice, destruction of government records, and conspiracy to defraud the United States. He was tried in federal court in Sacramento in September. He was convicted on all counts. He was sentenced to three years in federal prison. He is currently serving his sentence at a federal penitentiary in Lompoc, California.
Colonel Henry Ward was sentenced on the eleventh of June.
He was sentenced by Judge Marcus Holloway.
He was sentenced to 18 months of home confinement and 300 hours of community service. He was reduced in rank from colonel to lieutenant colonel. He was required to forfeit all pay and allowances. He was dismissed from the California National Guard.
Judge Holloway, in imposing the sentence, said the following: "Colonel Ward, you were a colonel in the California National Guard. You were the commanding officer of the 115th Area Support Group. You were in charge of the distribution of U.S. military relief supplies during a federally declared emergency. You knew that your son was stealing those supplies. You covered for him. You ordered your executive officer to destroy records. You accepted 90,000 dollars in cash that had been obtained through your son's thefts. And you stood in a relief depot in Sacramento and dropped an empty box at the feet of a captain and told her to explain where she had hidden the blankets. That is not the conduct of a colonel. That is the conduct of a man who put his family before his country, and who put his career before the families of Sacramento, and who put his reputation before the truth. You are going to spend the next 18 months of your life confined to your home. That is not a prison sentence. That is a mercy. It is a mercy that the United States Attorney offered you because your son has already been convicted and because you agreed to testify against Major Hargrove. It is a mercy that the United States Attorney offered you because you are 60 years old and you have no prior criminal record and you have already lost everything that mattered to you. It is a mercy that the United States Attorney offered you because the families of Sacramento are not asking for your blood. They are asking for their blankets. And those blankets have been returned. And those families are warm. And that is the only reason you are going home tonight instead of going to federal prison."
Ward said nothing.
He walked out of the courtroom a free man.
He walked out of the courthouse and into the parking lot and got into his car and drove home to his house in Elk Grove. He served his 18 months of home confinement. He completed his 300 hours of community service. He was reduced in rank and dismissed from the California National Guard. He lost his pension. He lost his retirement benefits. He lost his reputation.
He lives now in a small apartment in Sacramento. He is 65 years old. He does not speak to reporters. He does not attend veteran events. He is not a member of any veterans' organization. He attends church on Sundays. He volunteers at a food bank on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
He has never spoken to Captain Audrey Mills since the day of the depot.
He has never apologized publicly.
He has never apologized privately.
He wrote her a letter in the fall of the year of the trial. The letter was three pages long, in his own handwriting. It arrived at her apartment in Sacramento on a Tuesday in October.
She read it.
She did not answer it.
She kept it.
She keeps it in a shoebox in her closet next to the letter from Diana Reyes and the photograph of the blanket in the museum and the small clipping from the Sacramento Bee.
She has not read it again.
She has not needed to.
The letter was not an apology.
The letter was a confession.
And Audrey Mills had already heard the confession.
She had heard it in the courtroom.
She had heard it in his testimony against Major Hargrove.
She had heard it in the words he had said to her on the phone on the twenty-fifth of October.
She had heard it.
She did not need to hear it again.
May you like
She had heard it.
And that was enough.
