More convicts allowed to join U.S. Army

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- U.S. Department of Defense records show the number of Army recruits with criminal backgrounds has risen 65 percent in the last three years.

The number of waivers granted for U.S. Army recruits with convictions on their records rose from 4,918 in 2003 to 8,129 in 2006, The New York Times said Wednesday. The majority of the waivers were issued for serious misdemeanors including aggravated assault, burglary, robbery and vehicular homicide. Felony waivers also increased to encompass about 11 percent of the overall waivers granted in 2006 from 8 percent in 2003.

The Army in recent years also has accepted increasing numbers of enlistees who dropped out of high school, scored low on aptitude tests and fell short of weight and age restrictions.

Some have criticized the Army's lower standards, saying they put the rest of the military at risk.

"By lowering standards, we are endangering the rest of our armed forces and sending the wrong message to potential recruits across the country," said Rep. Martin Meehan, D-Mass., who served as chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight. "Our men and women in uniform represent the best and brightest in America, and we need to keep it that way."