Bergdahl probe goes to top general

Associated Press

WASHINGTON

The fate of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl now rests with a top U.S. general in North Carolina who will decide if the soldier should be charged with desertion after he left his Afghanistan post in 2009 and was captured by the Taliban.

The charge of desertion during wartime carries a maximum penalty of death. But the Army, which referred the case to Gen. Mark Milley, head of U.S. Army Forces Command at Fort Bragg, N.C., said he has a range of options.

Milley could decide not to charge Bergdahl, recommend administrative action, or convene a court martial on more serious offenses, such as desertion or absent without leave.