Felons in US Army

I have to admit that my global denial that the US Army enlisted felons may have gone too far, but...

... I'll stick to denying the original assertion that prisoners were let out of prison in order to

< . . . > and Pfc. Rufo V. (Pontiac) Vaquilar, who volunteered from the 1st Filipino Regiment. Vaquilar was given the nickname 'Pontiac,' because of the time he spent in prison at Pontiac, Illinois. Despite being incarcerated when the war broke out, the 34-year-old Vaguilar [sic] volunteered for military duty and was pardoned.

Zedric, Lance Q. 'Silent Warriors of World War II'. Pathfinder Publishing of California. pg. 136. 1995

During World War II and before, the judge has been an able recruiter for the US Army. Service in the US army and an Honorable Discharge looked a lot better then a prison record. Before World War II a drill instructor had more discresion in molding the charactor of a new soldier then they do now.

Diann A Poe

The practice of offering a person military or service or jail did not end until sometime around 1980. I knew several GI's who had been taken to the recruiter (and induction center) in handcuffs. In most cases, they turned out to be pretty good soldiers.