FORT BRAGG, N.C. (AP) — Former Navy SEAL James Hatch’s career as a commando ended when he was shot while searching for Bowe Bergdahl. He says his feelings toward the Army sergeant have gone from “I would like to kill him” to thanking Bergdahl’s lawyer for working so hard to defend him.
Hatch, who testified at Bergdahl’s sentencing hearing, has had eight years to think about the nighttime raid that ended with insurgent AK-47 spray ripping through his leg. He became depressed and barely survived it. Through therapy, charity work with dogs and a cathartic book-writing process, his thinking has evolved.
In an interview with The Associated Press, the retired senior chief petty officer says he wants Bergdahl to receive a dishonorable discharge, and doesn’t envy the military judge deciding his punishment.