A junior enlisted military police soldier stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, faces a general court-martial in May over allegations that he used and distributed drugs, including an incident in which he allegedly did a drug deal from an MP vehicle.
According to the charge sheet, which 18th Airborne Corps officials provided, Spc. Jacob A. Dickerson is accused of using and distributing “some amount of Oxycodone” while on post in September 2021.
He also was “derelict” in his duties as an MP because he “coordinate[d] a drug deal for Oxycodone while on duty, and by using a Military Police vehicle,” the charge sheet said.
The prescription painkiller is a federally controlled substance that is widely considered to be one of the drivers of the nation’s ongoing opioid crisis.
Dickerson is assigned to the 21st Military Police Company, 503rd Military Police Battalion, which is part of the 16th Military Police Brigade. Dickerson’s brigade is an independent unit aligned with the 18th Airborne Corps.
Dickerson also faces several felony civilian charges in Cumberland County, North Carolina: one charge of running a drug distribution site, two counts of distributing opiates, and one charge of conspiring to distribute opiates. He also faces one misdemeanor charge of possessing drug paraphernalia.
Dickerson’s next civilian court date is Feb. 17.
It’s not clear which judicial system first leveled charges against Dickerson, nor is it clear whether civilian and military investigators collaborated on the case.
Dickerson declined to comment through his military defense counsel, who Army Times reached via email. Army Times could not locate an attorney representing the soldier for his upcoming civilian trial.
His general court-martial is tentatively scheduled to begin at Fort Bragg on May 16.
Davis Winkie covers the Army for Military Times. He studied history at Vanderbilt and UNC-Chapel Hill, and served five years in the Army Guard. His investigations earned the Society of Professional Journalists' 2023 Sunshine Award and consecutive Military Reporters and Editors honors, among others. Davis was also a 2022 Livingston Awards finalist.
