Bowe Bergdahl’s lawyers are trying to get his case dismissed

The lawyers for alleged Army deserter Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl argued before a military judge that the U.S. military mishandled Bergdahl's prosecution, and that the case should be dismissed.

In pretrial hearings Aug. 22, the soldier's defense team petitioned to remove Gen. Robert Abrams from the case for referring charges to a general court-martial "without considering defense objections to and comments on the report of the preliminary hearing officer" and for burning letters of support for the defense.

Bergdahl's defense team also says Abrams "faced improper conflicts" as the senior military assistant to then-Sec. of Defense Chuck Hagel. The general was responsible for briefing Hagel on Bergdahl's health and reintegration processes.

Presiding judge Col. Jeffery Nance rejected the petition to remove Abrams because of the letters, saying "I'm having a hard time seeing any relevance."

While the prosecution maintained the letters weren't evidence and that Abrams shouldn't be forced to testify, the judge ruled against those claims.

The Army alleges Bergdahl abandoned his post in Afghanistan in 2009 where the Taliban captured him and held him in captivity until his release in 2014. The Obama administration negotiated Bergdahl's return in exchange for several high-ranking Taliban insurgents held in Guantanamo Bay.

Bergdahl faces two charges from the Army; Article 85 "desertion" and Article 99 "misbehavior before the enemy."

Bergdahl's lawyers have tried before to prove the military mishandled his case, included citing an October statement from Sen. John McCain who said if Bergdahl wasn't punished, he'd launch a Senate probe. The defense argues McCain's statements improperly impacted the public perception of the case and violated Bergdahl's Constitutional due process rights.

The Army Office of the Chief of Legislative Liaison reportedly asked McCain to "back off," saying his statement could allow Sgt. Bergdahl's defense to show unlawful command influence in his case.

The defense believes the events are part of a pattern of Army meddling in the case, and that the charges should be thrown out or that Bergdahl should receive no punishment if convicted.

In a separate, more recent affidavit, the Daily Caller reported prosecutors' allegations that Bergdahl deserted his post to join the Russian mob and use his training to become a hitman.

This latest revelation, combined with Bergdahl's attempts to join the French Foreign Legion and his time aboard an Alaskan fishing boat, shows what the prosecution alleges is a "psychological disposition toward adventure."

Sgt. Bergdahl's trial is scheduled to start in February 2017.