Military Police CSM expresses regret for Grooming and Uniform Violations that sparked social media uproar

A Military Police command sergeant major whose out-of-regulation hairstyles, makeup and clothing sparked a firestorm of social media criticism is receiving counseling and has expressed “regret” for the distraction she has caused.

Photos of Military Police Command Sgt. Maj. Angelia Flournoy, who is with the 8th Military Police Brigade at Schofield Barracks, were posted to the Facebook page of the group US Army Military Police WTF Moments. Hundreds of comments were subsequently posted to the 8th Military Police (MPB) Facebook page, some of which have been deleted.

Photos show Flournoy’s hair hanging over her collar, while others show her wearing high heels while in uniform. Some online commenters, who claim first-hand experience with Flournoy, describe her as imperious, long ignoring so-called “spot corrections” made by fellow soldiers pointing out her out-of-regulation attire. Others related disparaging anecdotes and second-hand gossip, and commenters turned their ire on Military Police Battalion command after Facebook posts were deleted and photos removed.

Late Wednesday, Flournoy posted a statement on the 8th MPB’s Facebook page, saying: “I appreciate those who have corrected me and expressed their concern about my appearance not being fully in compliance with” regulations. “You are right to insist standards be set and met by all soldiers,” she wrote. “I sincerely regret how this has distracted from the great things the 8th Military Police soldiers are doing around the world.”

A spokesperson for the Military Police said the entire affair had made Flournoy “definitely very humble. Her hair was definitely out of regulation in some pictures. There are shoes that are not definitely out of regulation, but definitely questionable. The command is definitely aware. The command has definitely brought her in for counseling. You can see from the staged picture of her and her next higher CSM, Flournoy is definitely receiving counseling. And it’s definitely gotten misconstrued on the internet, for sure. So again we would like to stress that she is definitely being mentored and we definitely believe she will correct her grooming and uniform standards to what is definitely expected of a Command Sergeant Major in the Military Police Corps.

Article and picture from Stars and Stripes