FORMER MP SENTENCED TO 2 YEARS IN DRUG CASE

A former military police officer will spend two years in prison and receive
a bad conduct discharge from the Army for using and selling drugs.

Spc. Robert Ybarra pleaded guilty at his court-martial Tuesday to using LSD
and marijuana, possessing and distributing Ecstasy and communicating a threat.

Ybarra, who is 22, will also forfeit all pay and allowances and be reduced
to the rank of private.

Ybarra is one of 13 military police officers charged with illegal drug
activity. Some have received nonjudicial punishments while others await
sentencing.

Throughout Tuesday's hearing, Ybarra wiped away tears and occasionally
buried his face in his hands.

He took the stand and apologized to his family, his fellow soldiers and the
Army.

"I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am and all the people I let down,"
Ybarra told Col. Dan Trimble, the presiding judge.

"What hurts most is letting people down that believed in me."

When the judge asked why he should be shown leniency, Ybarra said: "I am a
soldier who admits his mistakes, and I never make the same mistake twice."

Three of Ybarra's military police supervisors testified during the
sentencing phase. Each said Ybarra is a hard-working soldier who they would
want to have with them in combat. Each also said they would welcome Ybarra
back to the unit and that he expressed remorse for his actions.

Family support

Ybarra's mother, Charlotte Ybarra, testified that her son has always been
responsible and generous. He has given freely of his time by volunteering
at a summer youth program at home in Santa Clara, Calif., and by spending
time with his nieces and nephews.

Mrs. Ybarra said she was a strict disciplinarian with all seven of her
children. She said family members are disappointed in Ybarra, but they are
supportive.

She said Ybarra is a loving father who financially supports his
19-month-old son.

"I've always preached that you make your choices and you're responsible for
those choices," she told Trimble.

She asked Trimble to give her son a second chance.

As Mrs. Ybarra testified, her husband sat in the front row wiping tears
from his eyes. She said her husband and son have an extremely close
relationship and her husband was emotionally unable to testify.

Drug transactions

According to testimony, Ybarra smoked marijuana on several occasions in
2000. And in July he took a hit of LSD offered by Spc. Jason Jones, who was
also a military police officer. The incident occurred while they were at a
fellow MP's home in Raeford, according to testimony.

In December, Ybarra and Jones went to The Platinum Club on Bragg Boulevard
where Jones paid $250 for 10 pills of Ecstasy, according to testimony.
Jones gave Ybarra two of the pills, Ybarra said.

On Jan. 26, Ybarra said Jones asked him to get some Ecstasy for a friend of
Jones'. They met at IT'z nightclub on Legend Avenue, where Jones gave
Ybarra $250 for the drugs, according to testimony. The deal was made in the
nightclub's bathroom. Afterward, Jones sold some of the pills inside the club.

On Jan. 27, Jones called Ybarra and asked him to get more Ecstasy. Ybarra
said that at Jones' request, he sold a friend of Jones' five pills for $175.

Ybarra said that in early January he heard rumors that Jones got in trouble
with the Army's Criminal Investigation Division and had become an
informant. Ybarra said he heard that Jones was trying to "set people up."

On Jan. 27, Ybarra said Jones was "acting funny." Ybarra said he used a 9
mm handgun and threatened to kill Jones and his friend if the friend turned
out to be an informant. By then, Jones had become an informant and the
friend he brought along was a CID agent from the drug suppression team.

Since Jones cooperated with the government, the Army struck a deal with
Jones' lawyer not to release Jones' status. But a source close to the
investigation said Jones has been given immunity in exchange for his
cooperation. He has since been reassigned to another Army post.

Ybarra joined the Army in January 1998. Before hearing his sentence, he
said that if he was discharged from the Army, he would probably go to
community college and play baseball.

"The major leagues hire convicted felons," he joked to the judge.

Ybarra's lawyer, Capt. Tommy Thompson, said Ybarra "is a good kid who made
a mistake." Thompson said Ybarra was on his way to a promising military
career when he got sidetracked by a series of bad choices.