Late last fall, the Pentagon quietly began looking for ways to make it easier for people with minor criminal records to join the military. The goal of that review is to make cumbersome waiver requirements consistent across the services — the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force — and reduce the number of petty crimes that now trigger the process.

According to the data released Monday, a bit more than half of the Army's 511 convictions in 2007 were for various types of thefts, ranging from burglaries to bad checks and stolen cars. Another 130 were for drug offenses.

The remainder, however, included two in 2007 for manslaughter, compared to one in 2006; five for sexual crimes (which can include rape, incest or sexual assaults) compared to two in 2006; and three for negligent or vehicular homicide, compared to two in 2006. Two received waivers for terrorist threats including bomb threats in 2007, compared to one in 2006.

At least 235 of the Marine Corps' 350 waivers were for various types of thefts in 2007, and another 63 were for assaults or robberies that may also have included use of a weapon. The remainder included one for manslaughter in 2007, compared to none in 2006; four for sex crimes, compared to one in 2006; and five for terror threats, including bomb threats, compared to two in 2006.

Originally posted by scoopyjon
can people from another countru join the us army
if so how?

Immigrants and noncitizens have served in all U.S. wars – willingly and otherwise – since the American Revolution. During the Civil War, the Union army recruited Irish immigrants off the boat.

Alfred Rascon, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, won the Medal of Honor for extraordinary heroism during the Vietnam War and later became a U.S. citizen. Gen. John Shalikashvili, a native of Poland, rose to become chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Noncitizen soldiers do very well in military service, with attrition rates below that of citizens, according to a 2005 study by the Center for Naval Analysis. The 1.5 million men and women of recruitable age (18 to 24) who hold lawful permanent resident (LPR or "green card") immigration status provide an impressive pool of potential recruits, the study found.