Fox5 Atlanta says Col West won't be prosecuted

Fox5 Atlanta ^ | Dec 9, 2003 | Fox5 Atlanta

[XJarhead]

Eh, I always thought the distinction between "ex" and "former" is pretty stupid. The meaning is identical. And believe it or not, a lot of Marines privately will admit it doesn't make any sense as well. If you really want to insult a Marine, call him ex-Army.

....that a soldier gets punished for protecting the lives of his men from fanatical death cultists....

What a load of crap. Lots of soldiers protect their men from fanatical death cultists without getting charged, so there was more to it than that. West himself said he knew when he did it that he was going to get in trouble. In any case, I think he probably did the right thing. Note that his CO didn't do anything about it when he first heard about it. He blew it off, effectively covering for him. It was only after some weaselly army Sgt. wrote a whiny letter that it hit the big time. I wish it would have gotten buried, but that didn't happen.

Once it became public, you couldn't have the army brass and government publicly condone the breach of a standing order and treaties to which we are signatory. Kind of like Iran-Contra. A neat little scheme, but you gotta bust them if it becomes public. For the sake of good order and discipline, something had to be done to LC West. I'm glad is was comparatively light. Hopefully, the next officer who thinks something like that needs to be done will do it in a time and manner where there won't be some weaselly sgt. to turn him in.

If that you makes me some sort of unpatriotic, whiny PC loser in your eyes, I could care less.

I don't know what PC BS you're selling there X, but at least the rest of us understand what is wrong with it.

Well goody for you.

[Grampa Dave]

To everyone who has seen Jeff's thread re the good news of LtCol West, please go to the thread posted by Jeff below:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1037561/posts?page=1

FreeRepublic Exclusive: LTC Allen West personally confirms 'no prosecution advisement' from Iraq.
LTC Allen West from Tikrit | December 10, 2003 | Jeff Head


Posted on 12/10/2003 5:27:15 AM PST by Jeff Head


Upon hearing the preliminary news from Fox about LTC West and the disposition of his case last night (12/9/03) at about 11:15 PM mountain time, and the interview with his lawyer on O'Reilley, I fired an email off to the LTC for confirmation. I got a reply back from Iraq early this morning (12/10/03) confirming it. I am posting that email exchange:

Here is what I asked him in my email.

---

Al,

We just got preliminary word on Fox from Atlanta (and I'm in Idaho so I am using FR to scour the net) that there will be no prosecution.

Apparently O'Reilley interviewed one of your lawyers and indicated:
"Col West's attorney was interviewed tonight. The attorney said that the investigating officer would recommend that there not be a court martial but that he might be reprimanded. Likely half of his salary for two months and that he would not lose his pension."
Is this accurate? If so, God bless you man...you should be promoted in my opinion, but this has got to be good news...sane news. Sounds like they, albeit belatedly. This should never have gone as far as it did and I only hope it has not effected the moral and willingness for other CO's to do what must be done over there.

Sincerely,

Jeff Head

---

That email was sent at about 11 PM or a little after last night. This morning at 05:30 AM I Had the following reply from LTC Allen West himself. Here it is:

---

Jeff,

Yes Jeff, that is pretty much it. My attorney contacted me by e-mail last night with the news. Furhterance of my career is not possible because of being relieved of command, death kiss!

I am thankful to God and looking forward to coming home and getting on with my life. Now it is just a matter of going before my CO and receiving the punishment, no problem. Stay in touch and I may be on a flight home within the week.

God Bless,

Al

---

I am glad that this good man, who understood the likely impact of his actions, but was willing to take them in that time-critical combat situation he faced in order to better accomplish his mission and minimize casualties to his troopers, and who in fact reported himself...I am thankful to God in Heaven that he will receive his full retirement and come away from this as honorably as he went into it.
We need more good men like LTC Allen West.

While I do not agree with the overall circumstances in this case, our military justice system has worked as the LLTC felt and hoped it should have and I am content in that. I am sorry LTC West had to go to such lengths to make it work, particularly in these circumstances we face as a nation. I will be writing my congressional representatives about it at length in the hopes that some adjustments, particularly in attitude, can be forthcoming.


Kudos again, Jeff!

[Redbob]

That's great news:
Washington must have known that if play with firestorms, you sometimes get burned!

[Darksheare]

*chuckle*
Yeah, right.
Okay ExArmy.
If you knew anything about fanatical death cultists, you'd know that the LTC got the info out of the guy who'd been playing dumb for several hours in a way that suddenly and quite quickly removed all doubt from his mind as to his recollections.
If you're so sure that we'd just have to ask politely to get info out of the fanatical death cultists, then YOU go over there and prove that such thinking works.

If you think that there was another way to get info out of the clown in a timely fashion, then you go and prove it.
No, that isn't a load of crap.
But I know one when I see it and hear it.

If you really could care less, then why respond?

[Redbob]

"West himself said he knew when he did it that he was going to get in trouble."

Now read that part again carefully:
LTC West did NOT say that he knew it was wrong, he said he knew he'd get in trouble.

That's just not the same thing.

I personally think West practiced admirable restraint in not discharging his sidearm through the Iraqi's earlobe.

[XJarhead]

If you're so sure that we'd just have to ask politely to get info out of the fanatical death cultists, then YOU go over there and prove that such thinking works.

Have literacy rates on this thread suddenly dropped? Or was it too many danger close rounds? Reread my post, redleg. I never said that there was another method that would have accomplished the goal. In fact, I said that he probably did the right thing. What part of that do you not understand? Or are you purposely misrepresenting what I've said?

If you really could care less, then why respond?

Because you misrepresent what I've said, and I don't want others to think I agree with your misrepresentation. So I reemphasized my point.

I know and understand the deal about doing what needs to be done sometimes even if its outside "the book". Did it myself on occasion, and covered for troops and other officers who did the same on occasion. But I also know that if some things become public, they simply can't be ignored or glossed over at that point. Someone's got to take the fall, even if what he did was right under the circumstances. That's part of the deal if you're an officer.

West keeps his pension, and apparently his full rank as well. He's gotten a ton of support from a lot of citizens, and I imagine from within the army as well. I'm guessing that he'll be taken care of as much as possible, and I'm pleased with that.

[Darksheare]

Misrepresent?
Then how about saying in in a way that doesn't state to the world that LTC West should be hung to dry if that isn't what you said?

[XJarhead]

Now read that part again carefully: LTC West did NOT say that he knew it was wrong, he said he knew he'd get in trouble. That's just not the same thing.

That's exactly my point, and shows that West "gets it". He understood that good order and discipline required that some action be taken against him, even if he did the right thing. I have enormous respect for that. He's not calling himself a hero, and he never argued or asserted that the army should just ignore what he did. And he certainly never suggested he should get a medal, as some folks here have. He did what needed to be done, and he understood that something needed to be done by the Army as an institution as well. He properly fought back when the proposed sanction was too severe. Good for him.

[Killborn]

Fair enough. There is a massive distinction between gunning down POWs and psychological intimidation for info. Col. West is a hero.

[demlosers]

Reprimand - as in Article 15?

Reprimand maybe, but think he probably refused Article 15.

That would give his command 2 choices: have a Court Martial or drop the charges.

[Ben Bolt]

Agreed . Ltc . Allen West ? Good luck to you Sir !

[Conspiracy Guy]

The UCMJ is more important than lives crowd is absent today. They appear to be hoping that West's CO will not accept the Article 15 recommendation from the Article 32 hearing (they are hanging out on another thread hoping he is hung or worse). Though that is possible it would be highly unlikely. I hope it goes like it looks it will.

I will continue to pray until it's over. After that West is on his own ; )

God Bless our Troops.

CG

[Ben Bolt]

You are correct in that it is not entirely over but this is a positive step . Allow me to ping 1 of the staunch 1's .

[Ben Bolt]

Poobah is this old news for you ?

[Vets_Husband_and_Wife]

Thanks nicko!

[Vets_Husband_and_Wife]

Yeah, from the e-mails we've seen from Col. West, he is happy with the decision and is glad it is over. He has submitted his retirement papers, and looks forward to it.

:o)

We also are glad NO ONE has to endure more.

[tapatio]

Did anyone hear Col.West's wife talking with Michael Savage tonight?

[archy]

Did anyone hear Col.West's wife talking with Michael Savage tonight?

Nope. But I saw the WND report *here*.

Lawyer: No court martial
for Lt. Col. West
Officer who used shock tactics to save lives faces non-judicial penalty

---

Posted: December 10, 2003
11:53 a.m. Eastern

By Art Moore
© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com

An officer in Iraq who used shock interrogation tactics to thwart an impending attack on American soldiers will not face a court martial, according to his lawyer.

Lt. Col. Allen B. West will accept Article 15 non-judicial punishment from the commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division at a hearing Friday in Tikrit, Iraq, said Neal A. Puckett, a retired Marine officer.

Lt. Col. Allen B. West in undated family photo (Courtesy Angela West)

Puckett said in an e-mail, Maj. Gen. Raymond Odierno will conduct the hearing and decide whether West is guilty of aggravated assault.

The commanding officer has discretion to accept or reject the recommendation of administrative punishment from the officer who presided over West's preliminary hearing in Tikrit last month, Lt. Col. Jimmy Davis. But Puckett said all indications are that West will not be court martialed.

At his preliminary hearing, West acknowledged he allowed two soldiers to beat an Iraqi policeman who refused to reveal details of an ambush plot and fired his pistol near the man's head, threatening to kill him.

If found guilty, the punishment could include a letter of reprimand and perhaps some forfeiture of his pay, Puckett said.

That punishment would be recorded in his official military record, but does not amount to a federal conviction, the lawyer emphasized, which can only be adjudged by a court martial.

"We presume that he will be ordered back to Ft. Hood [Texas] thereafter, but a timeline for his return has been neither established nor promised by the Army," Puckett said. "All indications are that Lt. Col. West will not be ordered to face trial by general court martial, and will be allowed to retire in the grade of lieutenant colonel sometime in the spring of 2004."

Last month, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee appealed to the acting secretary of the Army to intervene on West's behalf. In a letter, Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., and a senior member of his committee, Rep. John H. McHugh, R-N.Y., said they were "highly disturbed" the Army was considering criminal action against West.

As WorldNetDaily reported, under threat of an attack, West took charge of the interrogation of an Iraqi policeman, Yahya Jhodri Hamoody, determined to flush out details as he warned subordinates "it could get ugly." Threatening to kill the Iraqi if he didn't talk, West fired a pistol near the policeman's head.

The scared policeman then immediately disclosed the information, leading to the arrest of two Iraqis last August and cessation of attacks on West's 4th Infantry Division battalion.

At the hearing last month, West was asked by his defense attorney if he would do it again.

"If it's about the lives of my men and their safety, I'd go through hell with a gasoline can," he said.

"But that's what's going on out there in the streets here, and that's how I feel about my boys," he told the hearing, held in one of Saddam Hussein's lavish palaces. "There is not a person in this room I would not sacrifice my life for."

But Army prosecutors believe his actions in the town of Saba al Boor, near Tikrit, violated the Uniform Code of Military Justice. He has been charged with aggravated assault and has faced a wide range of possible outcomes from no disciplinary action to a sentence of up to eight years in prison.

The prosecutors gave West a choice – face charges or resign within days of his 20 years of service, losing retirement benefits. West chose to face the charges and place his fate in the hands of Maj. Gen. Raymond Odierno.

Hunter and McHugh contended West's actions "were necessary to protect the lives and safety of his men" and were reported immediately to his superiors.

"To us, such actions if accurately reported do not appear to be those of a criminal," they said in the letter to Acting Secretary Les Brownlee.

The lawmakers asked Brownlee to "expeditiously provide us" with the investigation reports that led the division's commanding general to start the proceedings that could lead to a court martial for West.

They also asked Brownlee to "closely examine this matter and provide us with your assessment of facts and circumstances."

West also was defended by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John Warner, R-Va., and a subcommittee chairman, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla.

Inhofe told Brownlee, who was appearing before the panel, it would send the wrong signal "if we end up punishing someone for saving men in his command. ... He should be commended."

Warner, noting West's reputation as a respected combat leader, said he would "have a high level of concern" about possible criminal charges against West.

The Congress members have no official power over a potential military criminal case but carry weight because of their hold on the Army's budget and weapons programs.

West and Puckett are at a Forward Operating Base near Tikrit. In a statement provided to WorldNetDaily, Puckett noted several witnesses at the hearing testified about West's high-profile role in civil military operations.

West was helping Iraqis rebuild their towns, re-establish public services and utilities and begin the transformation to a democratic process for governance, Puckett said.

The officer spoke often in front of community leaders and sheiks at meetings in the town of Saba al Boor "and earned their trust by delivering the assistance he promised."

"In return," said Puckett, "the sheiks told an interpreter that they were protecting the Americans from attacks because of their respect for and trust in Lt. Col. West."

Puckett said if citizens want to express their view, they can contact their Congress members in the House of Representatives and the Senate or the Army. An e-mail to the Defense Department can be sent via this page by clicking the "Ask a question/Make a comment" tab at the top of the page.

West can be contacted by e-mail and his wife has her own e-mail address.

Angela West has set up a legal fund for her husband with the following address: Allen West Defense Fund c/o Angela West, 6823 Coleman Drive, Ft. Hood, TX 76544.

[Vets_Husband_and_Wife]

No, darnit.. I missed it! She's a great lady!