Hearing for National Guardsmen who Fail To Show up for Duty

We have been following the case of 5 national guardsmen from Tennessee who did not show up for duty recently. Today three of them appeared at court hearings in Sweetwater. NewsChannel 9 was there as Ewell Cook from Englewood and Christopher Murray and James Rohe from Seymour went before a judge. 2 of the men including Michael Helton from East Ridge did not show up. A staff sergeant issued 5 warrants when the men failed to show up at an annual training in Camp Shelton ,Mississippi. We spoke to Helton recently. He says his staff sergeant told him he did not have to go to training because he was recovering from knee surgery. Today we spoke to one of the others who says he had a similar misunderstanding

" I was told that when I failed out of that school in May that I would be at another unit by June. So I figured I wouldn't have to go. They would tell me if I had to go to their AT," said Ewell Cook, a private E-2.

The men could face up to 21 days in jail. The judge has scheduled their next hearings for September 23rd in Sweetwater.