Posted on 09/11/2004 7:01:03 PM PDT by Former Military Chick
A US Army specialist broke down in tears today as he admitted abusing inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison, receiving a lighter sentence in return for his testimony against others charged in the scandal.
"There is no way to justify it," Specialist Armin Cruz, 24, said after pleading guilty to conspiracy to mistreat subordinates and mistreatment of prisoners at the prison in western Baghdad last October. "I accept full and complete responsibility."
Cruz, who had been assigned to the 325th Military Intelligence Battalion, was sentenced to eight months' confinement, demotion to private and a bad conduct discharge.
The judge, Colonel James Pohl, adjourned the session briefly to allow Cruz, from Plano, Texas, to regain his composure after he broke down during his questioning.
Cruz became the first military intelligence soldier convicted in the scandal, which erupted in April when the media first showed pictures of naked, terrified Iraqi prisoners undergoing abuse and humiliation at the hands of their grinning American guards.
Others charged in the scandal are all low-ranking enlisted soldiers from the 372nd Military Police Company, a reserve unit from Maryland.
Last May, Spc Jeremy Sivits became the first soldier convicted in the case, admitting to four charges of abuse and receiving a year in prison, demotion and a bad conduct discharge. He is expected to testify against others.
Lawyers for the accused MPs have long contended that their clients were acting under instructions of intelligence agents and civilian contractors, who pushed them to "soften up" prisoners suspected of having information about attacks against Americans.
In recent weeks, the investigation appears to be moving beyond the MP unit, casting doubt on the Pentagon's initial finding that the mistreatment was limited to a handful of misfits in a poorly-led unit.
A probe released this month by Major-General George Fay focused on the role of military intelligence personnel in the abuse scandal and identified 27 people attached to the 205th Military Intelligence Brigade - both soldiers and contractors - accused of complicity in the mistreatment.
Prosecutors accused Cruz of forcing naked prisoners to crawl along the floor and later handcuffing the men together.
The prosecution maintained that Cruz joined Spc Charles Graner, Staff Sergeant Ivan Frederick and other defendants from the 372nd MP Company in mistreating prisoners.
Cruz, who bit his lips repeatedly during the proceedings, denied he either ordered or directed the prison guards to abuse prisoners.
Cruz said he was an intelligence analyst who was never trained in interrogation techniques, but was nevertheless ordered to lend a hand because of personnel shortages.
His lawyer, Stephen Kranes, maintained Cruz was suffering from untreated post-traumatic stress syndrome after he was wounded in a mortar attack and his sergeant was killed.
Mr Kranes said Cruz repeatedly asked for counselling but without success.
"His leadership needs to take some responsibility," Mr Kranes said. "What would have happened if Spc Cruz had received the mental help he asked for?"
However, the chief prosecutor, Maj Michael Holley, told the court Cruz made a conscious decision to take part in the abuses and must pay.
"He chose to degrade these men, to mock them like animals," Maj Holley said. He said the actions of Cruz and others had tarnished the image of US armed forces and put the lives of future captured American soldiers in jeopardy.
So what he should be given a medal.
After seeing how terrorists have raised the stakes with school children (and we are not far behind in the US), it may be time for the world to state that terrorists will no longer be treated in accord with the Geneva Convention (even though they wouldn't even qualify under the GC).
That would make everything academic.
Pathetic. There will be another terrorist attack. And soon. Maybe THEN people will grow an effin SPINE.
Good.
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