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Kent Herring, ’97
Major, U.S. Army Judge
Advocate General’s Corps
506 th Infantry Regiment,
101 st Airborne Division
Alumnus in Iraq
Prepares for Homecoming
by Yvette Scorse
At the end of his Iraqi tour, alumnus Kent Herring was used to the
“simple” life: an occasional movie between 13-hour days and mortar fire.
He considered coming home to Arkansas for his 15-day vacation but
opted for Spain. Before leaving Baghdad, he was looking forward to his
Thanksgiving return to the United States, a reunion with his family and,
of course, some good Mexican food. After almost a year in Iraq, Herring
talked about his deployment as a Judge Advocate General (JAG) and his
career as a military lawyer.
Herring sometimes hears explosions from his office. Sometimes, he goes
to work, dodging mortar fire. But he’s one of the “lucky” ones.
“Other than the danger involved with being here and hearing bombs go
off every so often, life is manageable,” Herring said.
He spends his days helping thousands of soldiers with legal concerns and
worrying about Iraqis who live in poverty, without clean water, sanitation
and electricity.
“When I go on convoys or patrols and see the bad conditions that most
Iraqis live in, I appreciate what I have on the base,” he said.
Herring lives on a relatively nice FOB (forward operating base)
complete with pool, small movie theater and a dining facility that he calls
“a poor man’s Luby’s.”
“Day-to-day life, while limited in its options, is
pretty simple,” Herring said. “On the bright side, the
commute to work is only about 50 yards.”
For the last year, he hasn’t worried about everyday
American frustrations like finding a parking space,
buying groceries and paying bills. Instead, Herring
has worked from 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday in the
eastside of Baghdad.
“The days are long, but we manage our workload
and get a lot of things done for the commanders and
soldiers,” Herring said.
His team advises six battalion commanders, 30
company commanders and a colonel, who is in charge
of 3,500 soldiers. They handle legal issues including
Uniform Code of Military Justice, fiscal law, Geneva
Conventions pertaining to detainees, the treatment
of civilians, targeting (rules of engagement) and
investigations of day-to-day operations.
They also handle claims from Iraqis pursuant to the
Foreign Claims Act for negligent and accidental acts
of U.S. forces. The claims have included an incident
when an American tank ran over 13 cars and another
when forces checked in an Iraqi policeman’s pistol,
“which we promptly lost,” Herring said.
Herring earned his Juris Doctor from the University
of Arkansas School of Law in 1997.
“After my four-year ROTC obligation, I asked
myself what an unemployed history major could do
for a living,” he said. “I was convinced that further
education as a lawyer might not be a bad idea.”
After graduating, Herring became a JAG, returning to the Army. Since
then, he has been stationed everywhere from FOB Loyalty in east Baghdad
to Fort Campbell, Ky., and Germany.
He now has 13 years of active-duty Army service and will probably stay
in another seven years, until he reaches the 20-year retirement mark. But
Herring said after working in the public sector for the majority of his career,
he would like to move to civil litigation or work as an Assistant U.S.
Attorney.
He’s also applying for Army funding to earn his master’s in international
law. “There is only one position available,” he said, “so I’ll need some luck.”
Just a few weeks before leaving Baghdad, Herring is reminiscent about
his summer vacation escape out of the Middle East desert to Andalusia,
Spain. He got 15 days off and a free flight from the Army. “Little Rock was
tempting,” he said, “but somehow Spain won out.”
After a year in war, Herring is excited to come home to the United
States. During Thanksgiving, he will reunite with his family when his plane
lands at Fort Campbell. Herring will again enjoy luxuries that he’s missed
like going out to breakfast, seeing an afternoon movie and spending time
with his parents in Bryant, Ark.
“Other than that,” he said, “I’ll probably go to the Whole Hog Café in
Little Rock and find a good Mexican restaurant.” n
Alumnus in Iraq Prepares for Homecoming