I don't think this guy killed little girls... he is a great example to follow... neither is he collecting hand outs for alcohol on street corners.
Vietnam Veteran Dave Roever:
Posted on 08/08/2006 6:05:27 AM PDT by twinself
BAGHDAD, Iraq - American soldiers took turns raping a 14-year-old Iraqi girl, and one of them put a bullet through her head after killing her parents and 5-year-old sister, an Army investigator testified Monday.
The attack followed a session of whiskey drinking and card-playing during which five soldiers plotted the March 12 assault, criminal investigator Benjamin Bierce said.
He cited details from a sworn statement by Spc. James P. Barker in which the soldier told how he and his comrades practiced hitting golf balls before heading to the Iraqi teen's home 250 yards from their post at a traffic checkpoint.
After the slayings, the soldiers returned to their post, where Barker grilled chicken wings, Bierce testified.
The testimony came on the second day of a hearing to determine whether the soldiers should stand trial in the rape-slaying of Abeer Qassim al-Janabi and the killing of her father, Qassim Hamza, her mother, Fikhriya Taha, and her sister, Hadeel Qassim Hamza, in the town of Mahmoudiya.
Barker is accused along with Sgt. Paul E. Cortez, Pfc. Jesse V. Spielman and Pfc. Bryan L. Howard of rape and murder. Another soldier, Sgt. Anthony W. Yribe, is accused of failing to report the attack but is not alleged to have been a direct participant.
In his June 30 statement, Barker described playing cards and drinking Iraqi whiskey mixed with an energy drink as the defendants plotted the attack.
Barker said the soldiers found the girl and her father outside, seized them and took them into the house, Barker's statement said, and Cortez and Barker followed them inside.
Former Pfc. Steven D. Green, who was discharged from the Army for a "personality disorder," led the father, mother and younger sister into the bedroom and closed the door.
Cortez sexually assaulted the girl, Bierce said, citing Barker's statement, then Barker tried to rape the girl.
Suddenly, the group heard gunshots, and Green came out of the bedroom holding an AK-47 rifle and declared: "They're all dead. I just killed them,'" according to the statement.
Green raped the girl, then picked up the AK-47 and shot the girl once, paused, then shot her several more times, Bierce said, quoting Barker's statement.
Barker said he poured fuel from a kerosene lamp on the girl's body but did not say who set it on fire. The soldier's statement did not say whether Howard or Spielman participated in the rape, Bierce said.
Another investigator, Gary Griesmyer, quoted Cortez as telling him that the teenage girl was weeping and speaking in Arabic and that Barker told her to "shut up."
Also Monday, another soldier, Pfc. Justin Watt, testified that Howard told him before the incident that Green, Cortez and Barker had planned to rape a girl, and Howard was to be the lookout.
"There's nothing I've read that says what to do if your buddies have raped and murdered a family," Watt said.
Another investigator, Michael Hood, told the hearing he interviewed Spielman, who denied shooting or having sex with anyone in the house. Spielman was given a lie-detector test and passed, Hood said.
Since the case became public last month, U.S. officials have said they were concerned it could strain relations with Iraq's new government if Iraqis perceive that the soldiers receive lenient treatment.
They have offered assurances the case will be pursued vigorously and that the soldiers will be punished if convicted.
The case already has increased demands for changes in an agreement that exempts U.S. soldiers from prosecution in Iraqi courts, and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has demanded an independent investigation.
Defense attorneys have questioned whether the seriousness of the charges is forcing the military to rush through the hearing and quicken courts-martial despite an ongoing investigation. They also have questioned the impartiality of the investigating officer.
"It's unbelievable to me, and that's why we're concerned about our client getting a fair trial," said Craig Carlson, whose firm is representing Spielman in the hearing. "They're doing it unjustly and illegally."
More likely a firing squad than a noose for these turds...I could never call them "soldiers"
"There's nothing I've read that says what to do if your buddies have raped and murdered a family," Watt said.
I know, buddy Watt... a firing squad for you as well!
If I knew that at any moment a sniper bullet could rip through my neck I wouldn't be "hitting golf balls" nor raping.
Maybe it's just me...
Once again, one of the true horrors of war surfaces.
Hey, I thought they were "hiting golf balls" also. Report omits that.
If this is true, these men need to be executed....very publicly. Death by hanging or firing squad is much kinder than what they did to that poor family.
Poor thing. Nobody ever told him the difference between good and evil. Buddies and booze is all that counts.
If they want to show leniency in exchange for his testimony, simply lock him up for the rest of his life with no possibility of being released.
"It drives you nuts. You feel like every step you might get blown up. You just hit a point where you're like, 'If I die today, I die.' You're just walking a death walk," Cross told the hearing.
He said soldiers often drank Iraqi whiskey and took painkillers to relieve the stress of not knowing whether the day would be their last. One such drinking session preceded the rape and murders, the hearing was told by another witness on Monday.
What a disgrace... these guys would have been low life thugs on our streets had the military not picked them up. My high ranking friend, in the military, tells me of these punks that they pick up.
I don't think this guy killed little girls... he is a great example to follow... neither is he collecting hand outs for alcohol on street corners.
Vietnam Veteran Dave Roever:
Exactly. This is what I call a true soldier and a man of honor. Thanks for bringing up his story!
Then do some reading / personal accounts of what the Russians did to the German women in 1945 before Germany surrendered. Then come talk to me men being disciplined in war.
I agree with you about being more disciplined, however, not ever soldier is of the most sound character. Not to mention, if you ain't never been in combat, then you'll never know what the '1000 yard' stare is about.
Sometimes even the best of men can 'snap' under prolonged stress. Still doesn't forgive the behavior, regardless.
I try very hard not to prejudge, but if this didn't go down the way JAG says, I'd expect the denials to be coming fast and furious right now, and I'm not hearing that.
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