Posted on 05/08/2009 4:58:58 PM PDT by mojito
A former US military contractor who shot and killed a defenceless and handcuffed member of the Taleban walked free today after a judge decided he had been provoked by the Afghan’s brutality.
The extraordinary case of Don Ayala, a former US Army Ranger...ended in a Virginia courtroom when he was sentenced to probation for the killing of Abdul Salam in November last year.
US prosecutors...originally charged Alaya with murder....But the judge decided that probation was warranted under the circumstances. Alaya was also fined $12,500.
Ayala had pleaded guilty to the voluntary manslaughter of Salam, an undercover member of the Taleban, whom he shot in the temple.
On November 4 last year in the southern Afghan village of Chehel Gazi, Ayala, who had retired from the US Army and was working as a military contractor, was part of a team aimed at helping US soldiers understand Afghan culture. With him was Paula Loyd, an anthropologist embedded with the unit.
Minutes before he was shot, Salam had been chatting with Loyd about the price of fuel. Suddenly, he threw a bucket of petrol on her and set her on fire.
Soldiers dragged Loyd, 36, to a sewage-filled drainage ditch to put out the flames. It took three men, including Ayala, to subdue and handcuff Salam. The Taleban later claimed responsibility for the attack.
When others told Ayala how badly Loyd was injured, he put a 9mm pistol to Salam’s head and pulled the trigger. Salam died instantly. Loyd’s death was far longer and more painful....She clung to life for two months before finally dying on January 7 at Brooke Army Medical Centre in San Antonio.
(Excerpt) Read more at timesonline.co.uk ...
Why would someone even get in trouble for shooting a dead Taliban member in handcuffs? (I know, I’m just making fun of the poorly written headline)
amen.
I am shocked, a Judge who correctly deciphers the law.
I’d give him a medal and a monetary award for ridding humanity of one more raghead terrorist...good for Ayala.
My only thought is that he should have started lower and used several rounds before he put down that rabid dog.
I’d vote for the guy if he runs for office.
I’d chip in for his fine, too. BTT.
...Sorry, not into hero worship, But, I’ll agree with justifiable homicide, I wish that verdict would appear more for folks as a defense...
Iam fairly well readbut this story is a mystery to me. Besides the horror of Ms Loyd’s death what caught my eye was her role as an “embedded anthropologist”
Is that a weak cover for CIA operative?
That POS VC deserved it, too.
Death came too quickly for the POS. It’s a shame Ayala has to live with the memory of his friend dying the way she did. I don’t blame him one bit for what he did. What is it they say in that part of the world, An Eye for An Eye? A little more patience and Ayala and his buds could have had a marshmallow roast.
Thank God for a judge with some common sense. If there were only a few more of them out there.
The only problem I see here is the utter waste of a perfectly good 9mm bullet.
Too quick.
No, sir, the bullet performed a noble service.
Shooting that guy tells me that he understands Afghan culture damn well.
...i felt that too, but emotion is not a substitute for the rule of law. If it were, reason would be replaced by, “I was pissed!” Judge, HMMM, not guilty, by reason of “I was pissed off.”...
...Take time for clarity, step back, and argue the facts...
I’m not sure where you are from, but in parts of the rural south, there is an unwritten two part test that is applied to any killing.
1) Did he need killing?
2) If so, was the person who killed him entitled to do so?
If the DA is foolish enough to bring a charge against someone when the answer to both questions was yes, the jury is probably going to convict.
In this case, the first is clearly a yes, and I’d posit that the second condition was also met.
I hope if I had been there, I would have had the courage to do what was needed. I fear not, but I support the man who did measure up to the task.
Damn right he did. However, if he had done what he did to friends of mine, I would have made sure the POS spent at least 24 hours dying a slow and VERY painful death. The POS didn't deserve a quick bullet to the head.
The handcuffed Salam should have been thrown face first in to the same sewage-filled drainage ditch with a cinder block tied around his neck.
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