The Shark Mutiny

“And then, you and the crew carried out the rescue. And were you on the bridge, in the line of fire, as it were?”

“Yessir. I was.”

“And did you direct the firing of the missiles.”

“Yessir. I fired one myself, hit and blew up the second Chinese helicopter.”

Lieutenant Commander Al Surprenant just shook his head and blurted out, “My God! And now they want to court-martial you?”

“Yessir.”

“No further questions.”

The silence in the courtroom was devastating as defense counsel finally sat down. And there was a slight air of resignation in the body language of Locker Jones as he stood up to cross-examine.

“Lieutenant Commander, the court has heard of your lifelong friendship with Commander Hunter. Would it be true to say you would have done anything to save him, including the making of a mutiny aboard your ship?”

“Yessir, it would. I would also have done anything to save any of the others…and, if I may, sir?”

“Please continue.”

“Sir, you may question me for a thousand years. But I’m going to save you a lot of trouble. I did not hesitate to remove the CO and to proceed with the rescue myself. And if I could live it over again, a thousand times, I’d still do it. I hope I make myself clear, counselor.”

“Perfectly clear. In fact you are the perfect mutineer. No further questions. I rest the case for the prosecution.”

There was no summing up by either the court president or the lawyers, as there would have been in a civilian case. And Captain Dunning rose and led his panel out. Lieutenant Commander Headley and his attorney also left the room, in company with Admiral Bergstrom and Admiral Curran.

Their wait would not be long. In the room behind the main court, Boomer Dunning called his team swiftly to order.

“I’ll take the view of the Lieutenant first, since I do not wish him to be influenced by the opinions of those who outrank him…. Lieutenant?”

“Not guilty, sir. Reid is plainly crazy. In my view he should be court-martialed, for cowardice in the face of the enemy.”

Boomer nodded. “Lieutenant Commander?”

“Guilty. If the CO says no, the risk is too great, that’s an end to it. The CO stands or falls by that decision, and no one’s charged him with anything.”

Captain Dunning turned to the second Lieutenant Commander. “And your verdict?”

“Guilty. Headley, for all of his good intentions, had no right to seize the ship. Certainly no right to have his CO arrested.”

“And you?” replied the Captain, turning to the last of his four assistants.

“Not guilty. I think the XO was right to assume command. There were grave doubts about the suitability of Commander Reid to make sound judgments.”

“Excellent. But may I just clarify that none of you is interested in a possible change of mind? Anyone want to go over the issue? Or discuss it further?”

No one did. Minds were made up at 2–2. Captain Dunning would decide Lt. Commander Headley’s fate.

“Very well, gentlemen. In a few minutes, we will return to the courtroom and I will make my casting vote, plus a short summation for the court, in order that they understand our verdict.”

He sat at a table and wrote carefully on the pages of the large writing tablet inside the leather folder. Then he stood up, and beckoned his four colleagues to follow him. They walked through the door, and Captain Dunning removed the sword from the wall and placed it upon the table. “Ask them to come in,” he ordered.

Lieutenant Commander Headley entered last and stared at the sword almost in disbelief as he took his seat at the defense counsel table.

“I should tell you the votes are divided two to two in this case, and I now have the duty to pass the casting vote, and with it the judgment of the court,” said the ex-submarine Captain.

“And I should begin by stating that Lieutenant Commander Headley’s opinions about Mercury in retrograde or any of the other foibles displayed by Commander Reid are not the bedrocks of the case. And we are not here to stand in judgment on them either.

“We are here, very simply, to decide whether Commander Reid issued an order in the early hours of that June morning that was so wrong, indeed so crazy, that he had to be arrested and relieved of the command of his ship under Section one-zero-eight-eight.

“And what was that order? He said he would not leave his nuclear submarine on the surface, and risk the lives of his one hundred seven-member crew, and the ship, in order to save eight men. Was that wrong? Possibly, in the light of events. Was it crazy? No. It wasn’t crazy. Was there a suggestion of cowardice? Again, possibly. No more.

“But was it sufficiently outlandish for him to be relieved of command of his ship, arrested and incarcerated in his cabin while his number two took over?

“The answer is plain. NO. ABSOLUTELY NOT.

“The defendant is guilty as charged. Guilty of making a mutiny on the high seas. But the court does not recommend he be jailed, as would be expected in such a case. But rather that he be dismissed from the service immediately, under the severest censure. The court further recommends that Commander Reid never again hold the position of Commanding Officer on a U.S. Navy submarine involving Special Forces. That’s all, save to remind everyone in this room of the following:

“If you permit every lieutenant commander to seize control of a warship because he does not agree with his CO, you no longer have a Navy. You have a rabble, in a very dangerous ship. My verdict was reached strictly for the greater good of the United States Navy. It was the only verdict to reach. And it always has been, ever since the morning of June seventh.”

And long after the principals of the Navy’s first court-martial for mutiny had departed, Dan Headley still stood helplessly at the defense counsel’s desk, still staring at the long mahogany table. Still staring at the cruel steel blade of the gilded sword, which was pointed at him alone.

EPILOGUE

Rick Hunter and Dan Headley returned home to the bluegrass together. Old Bart Hunter said it was about time, and promptly retired, leaving the entire operation of the sprawling Hunter Valley Thoroughbred Farms to his son.

Rick thus moved from U.S. Navy SEAL Commander to president of a multimillion-dollar Kentucky corporation in the space of a week. His first action was to deed a 10 percent shareholding of the land, mares and stallions to the ownership of Dan Headley.

Within one more week the headed writing paper of Hunter Valley contained the words Directors, Richard Hunter (President), Dan Headley (Vice President, Thoroughbred Operations), Bart Hunter (consultant), Robert Headley (Stallions).

Bart was surprised, but agreeable. “Took me and my daddy fifty years to build this place,” he said. “Took you about ten minutes to start dismantling it, giving it away to our good neighbors.”

“It only took Danny ten minutes to save my life,” replied Rick. “Guess it’s called quality time, right?”

“Well, I’m glad he did. Whatever you think’s fair, boy. That’s the way to run a business.”

“And a life,” said his son.

Rusty Bennett also resigned from the Navy and returned to the coast of Maine, where he took over the operation of his father’s two lobster boats, working out of the little island of Frenchborough, home of his mother’s ancestors for 150 years. Six months later he married the prettiest girl on the island, 12 years his junior.

Commander Donald Reid was never heard from again, resigning his commission and moving his wife and family to France, to a small town house in Grasse.