Just For The One Star
Chapter Five
"The Fallen Stars"
Authored By: Bradley Chapline
Oct 2020
Chapter Five
The Fallen Stars
General McMillian, in 1982, two weeks after I successfully delivered prisoner Charles Chitat Ng to Ft. Leavenworth's penitentiary was graciously allowed by Headquarters Marine Corps to resign his commission and retire.
So, for me personally, I wasn't about to let General McMillian, his cronies, or the Marine Corps in general use me as their scapegoat for all their ignoble schemes and clumsy blunders. The truth is, General McMillian and his staff at Brigade Headquarters were already out of control long before I arrived on the island of Oahu.
So, in the end of all the "hole-and-corner" administrative operations, competition scandals, armory robberies, and escaping prisoners, all of General McMillian's support staff were rightfully stripped of their first rate titles and transferred to other largely undesirable duty stations. Their credibility and powers would no longer be a given.
While General McMillian, in the beginning, may have been trying to save his own career as a Marine, he still resorted to recruiting staff where their courses of actions were surely not in the best interests of integrity. For, when the powers that be at Headquarters Marine Corps had finally come to label General McMillian as a poor leader, they did so with absolutely good reason.
It's all a shame. My wife had lost a true friend in the General. It truly bothered me.
I remember early one Christmas morning when my wife awakened me and asked me to drive her up to the General's house in officer country. It was a beautiful home with a majestic view of the windward side of Oahu, Hawaii. So, after some resistance, I finally agreed to take my wife up to see the General.
I knew knocking on the General's door at 6AM Christmas morning was not going to put him in a good mood. I was right. But, his irritation lasted for just a moment. My wife had beautifully hand decorated with miniature Christmas ornaments a tiny little live evergreen tree. When she handed it to the General, as a Christmas gift, I saw several tears beginning to fall from his eyes. Very much a sentimental moment for all of us.
It was very difficult for my wife to know that the General had been forced out of the Marine Corps, especially since I was allowed to stay in the Marine Corps, if I desired. In fact, it may have even rubbed "salt in the wound" that I was not only given a top notch (RE1A) reenlistment code, but I had also been selected by Headquarters Marine Corps to be promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant (E-6).
But, I had my absolute fill of military life. Additionally I didn't think at the time it was a good place for an enlisted man to raise a family. It was time to leave the Marines, and start a new life as a civilian.
Commentary By Brad's Wife - Michele Chapline
Speculation After The Benefit Of Passing Time
Epilogue
After reading “Just For The One Star,” I began to do some thinking about some aspects
that seemed to promote more questions than explanations to me. I learned some things
that were new to me.
I was aware that my husband had been acquainted with Cpl. Vicki Stone prior to
meeting me. This was not unusual. He had been in the Marine Corps for many years
and had been in numerous duty stations. However, I had not been aware that Vicki had
been a part of the brain trust behind the preparation of the Competition Squad for the
winning of the gold medal. She was apparently an exceptionally indispensable
member of this mission, though her role as “silent” partner precluded her from any sort
of reward for her efforts.
Not related in this narrative is how much Vicki had enjoyed her post in Washington, D.C.
and the fact that due to an allegation of sexual harassment placed by Vicki against an
influential person, she had not left there willingly. Nor, was she likely to have ever been
welcomed back. This also relates, perhaps, to the reason she was not transferred to
Camp Smith in Hawaii. This installation saw many gatherings of influential service
members and government officials. It is not unlikely that her name would have sent up
warning signals to those stationed there or passing through.
At the time, many more things were going on in our lives, mainly concerning the high
profile prisoner, Charles Chitat Ng, who my husband finally delivered to the prison at
Fort Leavenworth. These events would have resounding repercussions in our lives for
years to come. It is an understatement to say that since nothing had affected Brad as
far as the Competition Squad, we were more preoccupied with the situations resulting in
our current and future plans.
After all these years, approximately 37 or 38, I viewed this time with a new perspective.
So I looked at the true result of the cheating scandal investigation. Who was affected?
Who was not? What made sense? What did not?
I thought that it was strange that neither my husband, nor his contact in Washington,
D.C. were sanctioned in any manner for their part in the cheating scandal. Brad was
told he was not a “significant player” in the activities, but, the original idea had been his.
True, without Vicki the plan would not likely have been brought to fruition, but the actual
paperwork detailing the areas to be tested had still gone from his contact to him and
been implemented directly by him.
This said to me that some approximate two (2) years after winning the gold medal, there
had been no actual physical evidence of the exchange of information. If it had existed,
surely some punishment would have been exacted. Instead, my husband received a
high reenlistment code and a promotion in rank.
And yet, Captain Pfeifer lost his commission, was discharged under “other than
honorable” conditions. General McMillian was, in essence, forced to retire. And
Corporal Stone…she just disappeared.
In order to mete out the punishments to Captain Pfeifer and General McMillian,
something more than suspicions would have been required. As mentioned, if there had
been any physical evidence, there is no reason why both my husband and his contact
would not have received sanctions of some sort.
The Fallen Stars
General McMillian, in 1982, two weeks after I successfully delivered prisoner Charles Chitat Ng to Ft. Leavenworth's penitentiary was graciously allowed by Headquarters Marine Corps to resign his commission and retire.
So, for me personally, I wasn't about to let General McMillian, his cronies, or the Marine Corps in general use me as their scapegoat for all their ignoble schemes and clumsy blunders. The truth is, General McMillian and his staff at Brigade Headquarters were already out of control long before I arrived on the island of Oahu.
So, in the end of all the "hole-and-corner" administrative operations, competition scandals, armory robberies, and escaping prisoners, all of General McMillian's support staff were rightfully stripped of their first rate titles and transferred to other largely undesirable duty stations. Their credibility and powers would no longer be a given.
While General McMillian, in the beginning, may have been trying to save his own career as a Marine, he still resorted to recruiting staff where their courses of actions were surely not in the best interests of integrity. For, when the powers that be at Headquarters Marine Corps had finally come to label General McMillian as a poor leader, they did so with absolutely good reason.
It's all a shame. My wife had lost a true friend in the General. It truly bothered me.
I remember early one Christmas morning when my wife awakened me and asked me to drive her up to the General's house in officer country. It was a beautiful home with a majestic view of the windward side of Oahu, Hawaii. So, after some resistance, I finally agreed to take my wife up to see the General.
I knew knocking on the General's door at 6AM Christmas morning was not going to put him in a good mood. I was right. But, his irritation lasted for just a moment. My wife had beautifully hand decorated with miniature Christmas ornaments a tiny little live evergreen tree. When she handed it to the General, as a Christmas gift, I saw several tears beginning to fall from his eyes. Very much a sentimental moment for all of us.
It was very difficult for my wife to know that the General had been forced out of the Marine Corps, especially since I was allowed to stay in the Marine Corps, if I desired. In fact, it may have even rubbed "salt in the wound" that I was not only given a top notch (RE1A) reenlistment code, but I had also been selected by Headquarters Marine Corps to be promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant (E-6).
But, I had my absolute fill of military life. Additionally I didn't think at the time it was a good place for an enlisted man to raise a family. It was time to leave the Marines, and start a new life as a civilian.
Commentary By Brad's Wife - Michele Chapline
Speculation After The Benefit Of Passing Time
Epilogue
After reading “Just For The One Star,” I began to do some thinking about some aspects
that seemed to promote more questions than explanations to me. I learned some things
that were new to me.
I was aware that my husband had been acquainted with Cpl. Vicki Stone prior to
meeting me. This was not unusual. He had been in the Marine Corps for many years
and had been in numerous duty stations. However, I had not been aware that Vicki had
been a part of the brain trust behind the preparation of the Competition Squad for the
winning of the gold medal. She was apparently an exceptionally indispensable
member of this mission, though her role as “silent” partner precluded her from any sort
of reward for her efforts.
Not related in this narrative is how much Vicki had enjoyed her post in Washington, D.C.
and the fact that due to an allegation of sexual harassment placed by Vicki against an
influential person, she had not left there willingly. Nor, was she likely to have ever been
welcomed back. This also relates, perhaps, to the reason she was not transferred to
Camp Smith in Hawaii. This installation saw many gatherings of influential service
members and government officials. It is not unlikely that her name would have sent up
warning signals to those stationed there or passing through.
At the time, many more things were going on in our lives, mainly concerning the high
profile prisoner, Charles Chitat Ng, who my husband finally delivered to the prison at
Fort Leavenworth. These events would have resounding repercussions in our lives for
years to come. It is an understatement to say that since nothing had affected Brad as
far as the Competition Squad, we were more preoccupied with the situations resulting in
our current and future plans.
After all these years, approximately 37 or 38, I viewed this time with a new perspective.
So I looked at the true result of the cheating scandal investigation. Who was affected?
Who was not? What made sense? What did not?
I thought that it was strange that neither my husband, nor his contact in Washington,
D.C. were sanctioned in any manner for their part in the cheating scandal. Brad was
told he was not a “significant player” in the activities, but, the original idea had been his.
True, without Vicki the plan would not likely have been brought to fruition, but the actual
paperwork detailing the areas to be tested had still gone from his contact to him and
been implemented directly by him.
This said to me that some approximate two (2) years after winning the gold medal, there
had been no actual physical evidence of the exchange of information. If it had existed,
surely some punishment would have been exacted. Instead, my husband received a
high reenlistment code and a promotion in rank.
And yet, Captain Pfeifer lost his commission, was discharged under “other than
honorable” conditions. General McMillian was, in essence, forced to retire. And
Corporal Stone…she just disappeared.
In order to mete out the punishments to Captain Pfeifer and General McMillian,
something more than suspicions would have been required. As mentioned, if there had
been any physical evidence, there is no reason why both my husband and his contact
would not have received sanctions of some sort.
- Therefore, the only other leverage which could have been used was an actual
statement, or affidavit from a certifiably creditable source. A statement by a witness is
often tempered by stipulations and concessions. In a prosecution, for example,
immunity may be granted to an accomplice in exchange for testimony which will convict
a more major target. I believe this is what happened.
Corporal Vicki Stone had a grudge against both Captain Pfeifer and General McMillian.
She believed she should have been rewarded for her work in bringing the gold medal to
Kaneohe MCAS. She wanted to work at Camp Smith. Mingling with high ranking
military and civilian personnel was her milieu, the place she felt she belonged. She
undoubtedly felt Captain Pfeifer “owed” her for her work and resented that he had been
promoted and assigned to Camp Smith while she was not even being considered for
transfer to a position there.
Vicki was not treated well when she went up to work for the General. No one wanted
her there and it was not hidden from her. She most likely felt the General should have
shown his gratitude towards her for her part in helping the Competition Squad, but he
may not have known anything about it until, or unless, it would have been confirmed by
Captain Pfeifer when Brad brought her up to take his place as the General’s Secretary.- The fact that Brad apologized to her and attempted to get her to be his replacement is
most likely what prevented him from being named as having any importance in the
scandal. She did not have a grudge against Brad or his contact in Washington, D.C. - She, herself, disappeared. Brad tried to contact her but her quarters in base housing
were deserted. They had not been cleaned up…an unusual occurrence. He was
unable to locate her through the internet in years to come. We were at Kaneohe MCAS
for nearly a year after she was gone. No apparent effort on her part to contact Brad - was ever made.
I believe it is likely that she “got even” with those she felt had wronged her by contacting
NIS (Naval Investigative Services) and by offering sworn, but limited, testimony against
Captain Pfeifer and General McMillian. Her background and contacts regarding
Washington, D.C. were well documented and would certainly be believable. She
probably affirmed that she was the source of the information and that Brad, like the drill
instructors, only followed orders and did not have anything critical to do with the theft of
the information. She got along with Brad. He had tried to help her. And she bore no ill
will to his contact back East.
It is likely that she may have requested an embassy post somewhere in the world. This
would be the kind of position she would have loved and the duties she would have
excelled at performing. Maybe she requested a name change. Possibly she would
have requested an honorable discharge, but an embassy post is the type of reward she
would most likely have desired. And it makes sense that if she testified against higher
ups that she would have been removed from the base as soon as possible. It would be
a form of witness protection.
I cannot prove any of this. It is all supposition. But it answers the basic questions for
me as no other theory can. It is an interesting puzzle. Certainly something to think
about.