Desertion

Overview

The act of a military member leaving their post without authorization is considered desertion. It is also referred to as going AWOL (Absent Without Leave). Should an individual desert to the side of an enemy or rival, this action is categorized as defection. Those who commit desertion are called deserters, whereas those who defect are known as defectors. Unlike desertion, which is specific to military members, defection can also be carried out by civilians. Desertion is viewed as an act of treason by governing bodies like the Galactic Empire.

Historical Instances

Era of the High Republic

During the conflict that engulfed the planet of Soika, the father of Velko Jahen switched his allegiance from the Livtak Union to the Gagic Alliance upon discovering plans within the Union that he found objectionable. This event led to his meeting with the woman who would become Jahen's mother.

The Clone Wars Period

Not long after the First Battle of Geonosis, which marked the beginning of the Clone Wars between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, Separatist forces attacked a Republic troop transport. Cut Lawquane, a clone trooper who would later be known by that name, was the only survivor of the attack and deserted, feeling that his life lacked purpose following the death of his team. Cut later married Suu Lawquane and became a farmer residing on Saleucami. During the Battle of Saleucami, he encountered Rex, a Clone Captain from the 501st Legion, after Rex sustained injuries and his unit left him at the Lawquane farm to recuperate. Rex considered reporting Cut but ultimately decided against it after they jointly defended the farm from an assault by commando droid.

On the waterworld of Mon Cala, the Mon Calamari and Quarren species were divided, and their support in the Clone Wars was split along species lines. Nossor Ri, a Quarren chieftain, led his people to ally with the Separatists following the murder of King Yos Kolina, believing that Kolina's son, the Mon Calamari Prince Lee-Char, was not ready to govern. Lee-Char eventually realized that Riff Tamson, a Separatist ambassador and invader, had been responsible for his father's murder. He accused Tamson of this in front of Ri, who had begun to have his own doubts as Tamson's forces occupied the planet. Ri fully turned against the Separatists when Tamson attempted to execute Lee-Char, as the prince had anticipated. He assisted in repelling the invaders and, subsequently, pledged allegiance to Lee-Char during his coronation.

Aftermath of Order 66

In 19 BBY, the Clone Wars concluded abruptly when Palpatine, the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic and secretly a Dark Lord of the Sith, issued Order 66. This secret command forced the clone troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic to betray and execute their Jedi commanding officers. The order was enforced by secretly implanted inhibitor chips that controlled the clones' behavior against their will, leaving them no choice. However, some clones were either immune to the chips or otherwise free from the brainwashing, and many of them chose to desert Palpatine's newly formed Galactic Empire rather than serve it.

Rex, who had by then been promoted to Clone Commander, was traveling to Coruscant aboard the Tribunal with Ahsoka Tano, a former Padawan, to deliver the captured renegade Sith Lord Maul to the Jedi High Council. When Order 66 was issued, he briefly resisted the effects of his chip, having learned about their existence from Fives, an ARC trooper, who was silenced after discovering the truth about the chips and Palpatine's involvement. Although Rex had not understood Fives' warning at the time due to Fives' drugged incoherence, he recognized what was happening and told Tano to "find Fives" before the chip took complete control. With the help of three astromech droids, she found a grievance report Rex had filed about Fives' death, mentioning the chips. She then captured Rex and surgically removed the chip, freeing him from the mind control. When the 332nd Division realized Rex was no longer trying to kill Tano, they turned against him, but she and Rex managed to escape from the crashing Venator-class Star Destroyer. With everyone else aboard the Tribunal dead, Tano and Rex separated and went into hiding from the Empire.

Most members of Clone Force 99, an unconventional clone commando squad also known as the "Bad Batch," possessed immunity to Order 66. This was due to their status as either genetically defective clones or, in the case of Echo, the cybernetics that had been implanted while he was held as a prisoner by the Techno Union. The exception was CT-9904, the team's [sniper], also known as "Crosshair," whose chip did function, but was less effective than those of standard clones because of his genetic mutations. Following the rise of the Empire, and with their loyalty under scrutiny, Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin sent them on a mission to assess their obedience. They refused to carry out the mission upon discovering that their targets included civilians and former Republic fighters. Upon returning to Kamino, Hunter, the team leader, sought to rescue Omega, a unique modified clone they had previously encountered. They were arrested, and Crosshair was taken away on Tarkin's orders to have his chip's effects amplified, ensuring his complete loyalty to the Empire. The remaining members of the Batch escaped imprisonment with Omega, forced to abandon their brainwashed former comrade.

Sometime after the formation of the Empire, as the new government proceeded with plans to replace the clones with recruited [soldiers](/article/soldier], some clone commandos were assigned to train the new "TK troopers" at clandestine facilities, including one located on the otherwise uninhabited planet Daro. Gregor, a Captain and one of the instructors, soon decided to desert, unwilling to participate in the Empire's activities. He managed to escape the base while pursued by Imperial troopers, but was only able to activate a distress beacon before being recaptured. Rex, a friend of Gregor's, received the signal, but unable to respond himself, he tasked the Bad Batch with rescuing Gregor. The squad successfully infiltrated the base and freed Gregor, but Hunter was captured after being separated from his team, instructing the others to escape without him. The Batch subsequently regrouped and embarked on a mission to rescue him from the Empire.

In the months following the Empire's establishment, an increasing number of "reg" clone troopers began to question the new regime and go AWOL. Cody, a Clone Marshal Commander, discussed this with Crosshair before their mission to the planet Desix. The sniper firmly believed that clones who deserted were traitors. Crosshair's decision to kill Tawni Ames, the Governor, during the mission on orders from Imperial governor Grotton disillusioned Cody, who had attempted to negotiate a peaceful resolution with Ames. Upon returning to Coruscant, Cody questioned Crosshair about whether the Empire was truly benefiting the galaxy. He went AWOL that very night, and Rampart, the Vice Admiral, informed Crosshair of Cody's disappearance the following day, finding it curious that clones around Crosshair, including his former squad, had a tendency to vanish.

Imperial Period

During the Galactic Empire's reign, a brutal campaign was launched to seize the resource-rich planet of Mimban. Han Solo served as an infantry corporal within the Imperial Army during this campaign, observing that "we're the invaders" against the native Mimbanese. Following the death of his commander, Staz, Solo retreated and encountered Tobias Beckett and his gang of thieves. Realizing that they were impersonating Imperial military personnel, Solo requested to join them, but Beckett instead reported Solo to his superiors for insubordination. Han was sentenced to execution for his alleged insubordination by being fed to "the beast," held prisoner by the Empire on Mimban. Using his knowledge of Shyriiwook, Han convinced Chewbacca to collaborate in their escape, and the pair joined Beckett's crew. Thus, Solo became a deserter.

Maketh Tua, an Imperial Minister of Lothal, sought to defect from Imperial service after learning the true reason behind the Empire's interest in the remote Outer Rim planet. She contacted the Spectres, a local rebel cell, requesting their assistance in extracting her in exchange for the Imperial secret. However, Darth Vader used Tua to set a trap for the rebels, and Tua was killed in a bombing for which the rebels were blamed, preventing her from defecting or providing them with the information.

Alexsandr Kallus, an Agent of the Imperial Security Bureau, began to question his loyalty to the Empire after an encounter with Garazeb Orrelios, a rebel, on the ice moon of Bahryn. These doubts led him to become a Fulcrum agent for the rebellion, leaking information about the Empire's activities in the Lothal sector to the Phoenix Cell. He secretly aided Sabine Wren, a rebel, when she infiltrated Skystrike Academy to assist in the defection of cadets Wedge Antilles, Derek Klivian, and Rake Gahree, although Gahree died during the initial, unsuccessful escape attempt. Wren remained skeptical of Kallus' motives but allowed him to live as she, Antilles, and Klivian fled. The Phoenix rebels, including the Spectres, eventually discovered that Kallus was Fulcrum. Kallus remained within the Empire as long as possible, but Thrawn, a Grand Admiral, eventually discovered him to be a rebel spy. Kallus was arrested after attempting to warn the rebels about an attack on their base. During the battle, Kallus escaped the Chimaera by provoking Arihnda Pryce, the Governor, into ordering him ejected through an airlock. He was rescued in an escape pod by the Ghost.

Several months after the destruction of the planet [Alderaan](/article/alderaan], Thane Kyrell, an Imperial Navy lieutenant, deserted the Empire after witnessing the enslavement of the Bodach'i, having harbored growing doubts. Kyrell invited Ciena Ree, his childhood friend, to join him, but bound by the First Waver belief in upholding vows under all circumstances, she remained with the Empire, only agreeing to fake Kyrell's death on their homeworld of Jelucan as a favor. Nine months after his desertion, Kyrell encountered members of the Rebel Alliance on Oulanne, led by Wedge Antilles, and accepted their offer to join the rebellion.

Around the time of the Battle of Hoth, Kendy Idele, an Imperial soldier, and her entire unit mutinied against the Empire on Miriatin. Only a third of the mutineers, including Idele, survived, and they subsequently joined the Rebel Alliance. During this process, Idele was reunited with Kyrell, who had been a classmate of hers at the Royal Imperial Academy on Coruscant. She was both surprised and delighted to see him, having believed him to be dead.