National Guard officer deployed to southern border given reprimand after pleading guilty to assault

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A New Hampshire National Guard officer who led a battalion on the southern U.S. border has pleaded guilty to assault and several other crimes. U.S. Army spokesperson Leah Garton says military judge in Texas on Wednesday sentenced Lt. Col. Mark Patterson to a reprimand as part of a plea agreement. She says he pleaded guilty to assault consummated by a battery, sexual harassment, conduct unbecoming an officer, violation of a general order and other charges. Defense attorney Joseph Jordan said that his client “took responsibility for exactly what he did wrong, and that is why his sentence was only a reprimand.”