Posted on 04/01/2005 4:31:39 PM PST by Former Military Chick
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| U.S. Soldier Convicted of Killing Iraqi Walks Free Fri Apr 1, 2005 11:41 AM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - A U.S. army tank company commander convicted of shooting dead a wounded Iraqi walked free from court on Friday, although he was dismissed from the army for what he called a "mercy killing."
Army Captain Rogelio Maynulet had faced up to 10 years in jail after a court martial at a U.S. army base in Wiesbaden, Germany, found him guilty of assault with intent to commit voluntary manslaughter.
"He was sentenced with dismissal from the United States Army ... there will be no confinement time," a military spokesman said.
Prosecutors had pressed for conviction on a more serious charge of assault with intent to commit murder, which carries a maximum 20-year jail sentence.
The shooting occurred last May when U.S. troops were pursuing suspected militiamen supporting Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr near the Iraqi city of Najaf, the court was told.
U.S. soldiers fired on a car, wounding the driver and a passenger. Maynulet said he then shot dead the driver to put him out of his misery.
"He was in a state I didn't think was dignified. I had to put him out of his misery," Maynulet said in his defense according to U.S. military's Stars and Stripes magazine.
The jury was shown footage of the shooting filmed by a U.S. surveillance drone.
The mercy killing argument was used by the defense in the cases of two U.S. soldiers who were convicted in December and January of murdering an Iraqi.
The man suffered severe abdominal wounds and burns when U.S. troops attacked a rubbish truck they suspected guerrillas were using.
Staff Sergeant Johnny Horne was sentenced to three years in jail and Staff Sergeant Cardenas Alban to one year over the Iraqi's death.
Local Iraqis said the men on the truck were innocent rubbish collectors.
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Lethal force can only be used in accordance with military law. Otherwise, you could just line up people and machine-gun them at your whim. Maynulet violated the legal use of force, and, all things considered, he got a slap on the wrist. Enlisted men are going to prison for similar actions.
Hero Tribute - Would like help from fellow ring knockers (West Point Class of 1961)
Glad he's a member of the Club. ;)
Bookmarked...
Don't
It's not like you think.
Red6
That's what I was thinking. If he pulled the trigger, how come the sergeants got jail time?
Agreed ... but keep in mind, America is in the initial stages of re-birth ... or death.
There's a slew of events being thrown at us and I think we're all just a little freaked out right now.
Sandy Berger is part of the establishment.
This guy is just another peasant.
I will take this guy over the Sandy Bergers any day.
for later
I say give him a medal.
He should have just removed the feeding tube from the Iraqi, he would still be in the Army if he killed him that way.
The article says: "The mercy killing argument was used by the defense in the cases of two U.S. soldiers who were convicted in December and January of murdering an Iraqi."
"December and January" seem to refer to two other incidents.
Mind a clarification on your comment?
Yep.
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