Army Says It Has Nothing to Do With Tattoo Policy Change
PENTAGON — A Department of the Army spokesman announced Thursday that Sgt. Maj. Dan Dailey, the highest enlisted soldier in the U.S. Army, had been transferred to an administrative position pending the results of an unspecified investigation.
Although Army investigators would not comment on the ongoing case, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno released a statement.
“While I have the highest level of respect for the sergeant major [Dailey], recent events have forced me to take a hard look at our ability to continue the Army’s progression into the professional, well-disciplined fighting force of the 21st century,” Odierno said. “This has nothing to do with grooming policies that may or may not have been erroneously revoked in the last few weeks.”
While Dailey was not available for comment due to the open case against him, Army officials announced that the recent, much
celebrated revocation of the service’s tattoo policy was in fact an April Fools joke, as many soldiers had already believed.
The Pentagon also wanted to stress that while the gag was in good fun, any soldiers caught with new tattoos would be immediately prosecuted under the UCMJ
