For second time in a year, Fort Bragg officer's political protest under scrutiny

Commanders at Fort Bragg are reviewing Capt. Emily Rainey’s involvement in last week's events in the nation's capital.

It marks the second time in just months that Rainey has been in hot water for her political activity.

In May she posted a video of herself taking down yellow tape around swings and slides at a playground in Southern Pines so her children could play. Southern Pines police charged her with injury to personal property, and told WRAL News that they let her off with warnings twice before after she tore down the tape closing off the playground.

Fort Bragg says it took what it calls "appropriate disciplinary action" against her for that protest, and in October, she resigned her commission as an officer in the United States Army.

Now, just months before she was scheduled to leave the Army, Fort Bragg leaders are trying to determine if Rainey broke any military laws by leading 100 members of Moore County Citizens for Freedom to the Washington, D.C. rally that turned into a deadly riot.

Maj. Dan Lessard, spokesperson for 1st Special Forces Command (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, issued this statement:

"Our command is aware of Capt. Emily Rainey’s presence at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and is currently investigating to determine the facts as to her exact involvement.

It is unclear if she violated any laws or regulations, as the DoD encourages members of the Armed Forces to carry out the obligation of citizenship, so long as their actions are in keeping with DoD policy and do not impair the good order and discipline of the service. The investigation will determine whether further actions by the command are warranted.

At this time there is no indication any other members of the command were present at the Capitol."

Buccino pointed out that soldiers are allowed to participate in political activity.

"It's important for us to keep in mind that soldiers are allowed to participate in political rallies, provided they do so in civilian clothes, provided that they adhere to all laws,"

However, there are caveats. The Department of Defense directive prohibits active-duty servicemembers from sponsoring partisan organizations. It is unclear if Rainey’s participation with her group on Wednesday went against DOD policy.

Rainey said she attended the Trump rally while on leave, didn’t advertise that she was an Army officer and told her bosses ahead of time that she'd be going. "We are confident justice will prevail proving our innocence,” she said.

Rainey told the Associated Press that she didn’t know of anyone who entered the Capitol and that her group was headed back to their buses hours before an emergency curfew took effect.

“I was a private citizen and doing everything right and within my rights,” she said.

Rainey, 30, is assigned to the 4th Psychological Operations Group at Fort Bragg, according to Maj. Daniel Lessard, a spokesman for 1st Special Forces Command. Known as PSYOPS, the group uses information and misinformation to shape the emotions, decision-making and actions of American adversaries.

In June, Rainey wrote an article for the online military publication SOFREP about navigating the regulations around political activity. “The more you know about the rules, the freer you become,” she wrote.