DOJ Prosecutor Maj. Patrick Greenwood joins 185th ARW JAG team

Department of Justice Prosecutor, Maj. Patrick Greenwood recently joined the Judge Advocate General team as the Assistant JAG at the Iowa Air National Guard 185th Air Refueling Wing in Sioux City, Iowa.  

Before coming to the 185th, Greenwood worked in Naval Intelligence for ten years and was first assigned to Lemoore California. The Cherokee, Iowa native later entered the Naval Reserves while going to law school at the University of Iowa. Following law school, Greenwood deployed to Germany for a year and then after a brief separation, reenlisted in the Iowa Air National Guard.  

Despite being new to the Air Guard and new to JAG, Greenwood said the 185th ARW’s mission piqued his interest, and he liked the idea of expanding his understanding of the legal profession. 

“Coming in and meeting the base and the awesome people that are here, I decided to come back in and close out my 20 years,” said Greenwood.  

As a JAG Officer, Greenwood’s main responsibility is to advise the commander on all legal aspects concerning the unit.  

According to Maj. Amanda Dermady, the USAF Director of Staff from the AF JAG School, Greenwood got off to a good start with his Air National Guard career. 

Upon completion of the AF JAG school, Greenwood was selected as the Lowry Award recipient from the Judge Advocate Staff Officer School at Maxwell AFB in Montgomery, Alabama. The Lowry award is the highest achievable award during JAG school and goes to the top graduate in each class who best represents qualities of leadership, academic excellence, esprit de corps, officership, and service before self. 

Dermady said Greenwood embodies all these qualities and is a very well-deserved recipient of this award.  

The award is sponsored by the Lowry family and is named after Major Robert L. Lowery, an Air Force Judge Advocate killed in the line of duty.  

Greenwood said he believes joining the military helped further his civilian career.  

“The military equipped me with some skill sets that I would not normally have had if I had gone the civilian route right away,” said Greenwood. 

Greenwood explained that the military gave him guidance for what he wanted to do in life and also gave him great experiences along the way. 

“The military gave me direction and opportunities that I never thought I would have to go places and do things,” said Greenwood. “I think its great that I can be from a small town like Cherokee and have an impact on the mission right away."