The appeal of Green Beret Sgt. 1st Class Charles Martland, the man discharged from the Army for hitting an Afghan commander who raped a child, was rejected by the Army because it does not meet the right criteria. Martland, who had served for 11 years, will not be allowed to return to military service.

Earlier this week, the New York Times reported that the Pentagon told military members in Afghanistan to turn a blind eye towards child abuse perpetrated by Afghan allies. Martland and his team leader Daniel Quinn were featured in the article for their contentious decision to confront a local leader for raping a 12 year-old boy and beating his mother. Along with the testimonies of anonymous soldiers, Martland and Quinn painted a picture of rampant sexual abuse condoned by the American military.

The Pentagon denies having such a policy and responded that it turns those cases over to local authorities. Unlike Martland, Quinn did not fight his discharge and voluntarily left the military.

Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Marine veteran himself, wrote an op-ed in support of Martland and argued that even if there is no official policy, the Pentagon had made its position clear.

“This is one case where better judgment must prevail,” Hunter wrote. “Quinn and Martland were reprimanded because they were told it wasn’t their place to intervene and they should properly observe Afghanistan’s cultural and relationship practices. There is no policy that requires our soldiers to look the other way, but, clearly, the fact that Quinn, Martland, and others have been punished for intervening in such cases of abuse shows exactly how our military leadership has decided to handle these cases.”