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Ex-US commander at Iraq jail faces trial (aiding the enemy, initially faced death sentence)
Yahoo ^ | 10/13/07

Posted on 10/14/2007 6:50:13 AM PDT by Libloather

Ex-US commander at Iraq jail faces trial
Sat Oct 13, 2:25 PM ET

BAGHDAD - A former U.S. commander at the jail that held Saddam Hussein will face trial next week on charges of aiding the enemy by providing a cell phone to detainees and acting inappropriately with an interpreter, the military said Saturday.

Army Lt. Col. William H. Steele, a reservist from Prince George, Va., pleaded guilty on Oct. 7 to three of seven charges, which carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison, forfeiture of pay and dismissal from the Army, according to the military.

He will be tried on the remaining charges, including aiding the enemy by providing an unmonitored cell phone to prisoners, giving special privileges, acting inappropriately with an interpreter and failing to obey an order, the military said.

The military said Steele could face life in prison if convicted. Steele initially faced a possible death sentence, but the former acting commander general of U.S. forces in Iraq opted to make it a non-capital case, said military spokesman Lt. Col. Rudolph Burwell.

The trial, which has been delayed twice to give lawyers more time to prepare, is scheduled to start Monday.

The alleged incidents took place from October 2005 to February 2007, starting when Steele was commander of the 451st Military Police Detachment at Camp Cropper prison in Baghdad and in his later post as a senior patrol officer at nearby Camp Victory with the 89th Military Police Brigade.

During pretrial testimony in June, witnesses said Steele approved buying Cuban cigars for ousted leader Saddam Hussein, fraternized with a detainee's daughter and used his service pistol to intimidate tower guards. He has been behind bars in Kuwait since March.

Saddam was held at Camp Cropper until he was hanged by Iraqi authorities last December.

Steele originally faced nine charges, but prosecutors dismissed allegations connected to an inappropriate relationship with the daughter of a detainee and the improper spending of government money by buying comfort items, including cigars, for prisoners, Burwell said.

The only other U.S. officer known to have been accused of collaborating with the enemy since the start of the Iraq war was Capt. James J. Yee, a Muslim chaplain who was linked to a possible espionage ring at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, military prison.

He was eventually cleared and given an honorable discharge.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News; Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: billsteele; commander; iraq; jail; jamesyee; jimyee; saddamhussein; steele; trial; williamsteele; yee
...providing a cell phone to detainees...

That's IT? What about this clown?


April 3: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enters inside the historic Ommayad Mosque during her tour of downtown Damascus, Syria.

1 posted on 10/14/2007 6:50:31 AM PDT by Libloather
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To: Libloather

It reads to me like there are several other charges involved.


2 posted on 10/14/2007 6:55:42 AM PDT by basil (Support the Second Amendment--buy another gun today!)
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To: Libloather
Providing an unmonitored cell phone to the right (or wrong) detainee could have SERIOUS consequences resulting in the death of US military personnel or Iraqi providers of intelligence. I can understand that.

But what is this “inappropriate behavior with an interpreter”? I am guessing it is a her, and he was sleeping with her. She could have been providing intelligence to insurgents, or one of the detainees could have been a relative/lover/friend who she was trying to get certain things for.

But I agree about the clown. She is truly treasonous.

3 posted on 10/14/2007 7:04:56 AM PDT by rlmorel (Liberals: If the Truth would help them, they would use it.)
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To: Libloather

Clinton sold our defense secrets to the Chinese communists for his re-election campaign money, and he WALKED!


4 posted on 10/14/2007 7:08:01 AM PDT by kitkat (I refuse to let the DUers chase me off FR.)
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To: Libloather

Serves him right for the torture he put these detainees thru. I’m sure the Democrats will soon open hearings into this.


5 posted on 10/14/2007 7:37:18 AM PDT by VeniVidiVici (No buy China!!)
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To: Libloather

traitor

6 posted on 10/14/2007 7:56:41 AM PDT by do the dhue (They've got us surrounded again. The poor bastards. General Creighton Abrams)
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To: Libloather
During pretrial testimony in June, witnesses said Steele approved buying Cuban cigars for ousted leader Saddam Hussein, fraternized with a detainee's daughter and used his service pistol to intimidate tower guards. He has been behind bars in Kuwait since March.

And what did this POS do for a living in the united states. Take him out and put him against the wall, if he did these things.

7 posted on 10/14/2007 7:59:16 AM PDT by org.whodat (What's the difference between a Democrat and a republican????)
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To: Libloather

I think the moral of the story is that this guy acted from corrupt and venal motives—money and sex. If he had betrayed his country for political reasons, he would never have been prosecuted, because the Democrats would have raised a stink and come to his defense.


8 posted on 10/14/2007 8:00:37 AM PDT by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: DAVEY CROCKETT; Founding Father; FARS; milford421

Ping.


9 posted on 10/14/2007 8:16:57 AM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (This is "Be an Angel Day", do something nice for someone today.)
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To: rlmorel

She’d look better as a Christmas tree ornament on a light post. Treason is treason - Death by ru-ru.


10 posted on 10/14/2007 2:00:03 PM PDT by Sword_Svalbardt (Sword Svalbardt)
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To: Cicero

All he needs to do is declare his is a democrat and Bush is prosecuting him for political reasons. Pelosi, the media and gang will rush to his defense.


11 posted on 10/14/2007 5:37:19 PM PDT by FreeAtlanta (Search for Folding Project - Join FR Team 36120)
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To: Libloather

The way Pelosi’s holding her mouth it looks like she got away with a souvenir mouthful after kissing Assad’s arse.


12 posted on 10/14/2007 9:21:41 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude Adjustments Offered Here Free of Charge)
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To: Libloather
The only other U.S. officer known to have been accused of collaborating with the enemy since the start of the Iraq war was Capt. James J. Yee, a Muslim chaplain who was linked to a possible espionage ring at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, military prison.

Yee was NOT "cleared," the charges were just dropped because his case would hve opened up a can of worms:

In dismissing the charges, Maj. Gen. Geoffrey D. Miller, commander of Joint Task Force Guantanamo, which operates the detention center, cited "national security concerns that would arise from the release of the evidence" if the case proceeded. "In the grand scheme of things, and in the interest of national security, Gen. Miller felt like the charges needed to be dropped," said Lt. Col. Bill Costello, a Southcom spokesman. "It seemed to be the prudent way to proceed."
-------- "Charges Dropped Against Muslim Chaplain," 03/19 6:57p CST, LARRY HOBBS

13 posted on 10/14/2007 9:29:43 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude Adjustments Offered Here Free of Charge)
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To: piasa

That’s from an AP story out of Miami, by the way.


14 posted on 10/14/2007 9:36:02 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude Adjustments Offered Here Free of Charge)
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To: Libloather
"...providing a cell phone to detainees..."

Truly a "phony" soldier!

15 posted on 10/14/2007 9:45:23 PM PDT by endthematrix (He was shouting 'Allah!' but I didn't hear that. It just sounded like a lot of crap to me.)
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