Second Lt. Nicole Dalmazzi was found guilty Wednesday of illegal drug use and was dismissed from the Air Force and will serve one month in confinement at Chouteau County Detention Center.

Dalmazzi, who was assigned to Malmstrom Air Force Base, had also been charged with obstruction of justice, but in a pre-trial agreement, that charge was withdrawn since she pleaded guilty to illegal drug use.

Dalmazzi elected to have her case heard by military judge. Lt. Col. Lyndell Powell of McChord AFB in Washington heard the case and issued the sentence.

Dalmazzi was commissioned through Air Force ROTC and entered active duty in August 2012. She was assigned to the 12th Missile Squadron at Malmstrom and was a missile crew member.

She told the court that she swallowed ecstasy pills on five separate occasions between January 2013 and February 2014.

During the course of the drug investigation, the Air Force Office of Special Investigation discovered that missile officers were cheating on proficiency tests, which resulted in a separate investigation.

Dalmazzi was investigated for cheating, but no charges were brought against her related to cheating.

Because the cheating investigation brought so much media and public attention to Malmstrom and the nuclear force, Dalmazzi's defense moved that the case should be dismissed due to unlawful command influence.

They argued that statements by senior Air Force and Department of Defense officials that indicated those who had cheated or done drugs should be held accountable and that commanders who didn't do so would be fired.

The defense, lead by Capt. Terry Coulter of Kirtland AFB in New Mexico, said that the message was sent when nine Malmstrom commanders were fired and the wing commander was allowed to resign as a result of the cheating investigation.

Coulter argued that charges were brought against Dalmazzi because of the pressure on commanders from the top levels.

Dalmazzi's squadron commander, Lt. Col. Justin McMillan, said that he was presented with evidence in September 2014 and felt there was enough to move forward to an Article 32 investigative hearing, similar to a grand jury, was held to determine if trial by court-martial is warranted.

"I never felt any pressure from the higher ups," McMillian said.

The Article 32 hearing was headed by an investigator from Air Education and Training Command and reached the same conclusions as McMillian and the OSI investigation.

Powell denied the motion to dismiss on the basis of unlawful command influence and found that no such influence existed in this case.

In an unsworn statement, Dalmazzi told the judge through tears, "I am deeply sorry to everyone."

Her defense presented character statements from other airmen in support of Dalmazzi and her father testified that she was a hard worker and always owned up to her mistakes.

Dalmazzi and her defense asked Powell that he consider not dismissing her from the Air Force.

"I truly love putting on my uniform and serving my country," she said in her unsworn statement.

The defense also presented a written statement from Dalmazzi explaining factors in her life, including going through divorce, at the time leading up to her lapse in judgment with taking ecstasy pills.

Several airmen attended the court-martial and hugged Dalmazzi during breaks and offered support.

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