General Frank H. Kearney
Posted on 09/21/2007 10:02:06 AM PDT by claymax
FORT BRAGG, N.C., Sept. 17 — From his position about 100 yards away, Master Sgt. Troy Anderson had a clear shot at the Afghan man standing outside a residential compound in a village near the Pakistan border last October. When Capt. Dave Staffel, the Special Forces officer in charge, gave the order to shoot, Sergeant Anderson fired a bullet into the man’s head, killing him. In June, Captain Staffel and Sergeant Anderson were charged with premeditated murder. On Tuesday, in a rare public examination of the rules that govern the actions of Special Operations troops in Afghanistan, a military hearing will convene at Fort Bragg to weigh the evidence against the two men, both Green Berets.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Tell me about it! The Green Beret was in a bad situation in war.
On Oct. 13, 2006, when Captain Staffel learned that Mr. Buntangyar could be found in a home near the village where his detachment was guarding a medical convoy, he ordered a seven-man team to investigate the tip.
Driving toward Ster Kalay in two government vans, the Americans called the Afghan national police and border patrol officers to assist them, Mr. Waple said. Mr. Buntangyar had already been “vetted as a target” by American commanders, as an enemy combatant who could be legally killed once he was positively identified, Mr. Waple said.
After the Afghan police called Mr. Buntangyar outside and twice asked him to identify himself, they signaled, using a prearranged hand gesture, to Sergeant Anderson, concealed with a rifle about 100 yards away, Mr. Waple said.
The highest-ranking witness called to testify at the soldiers’ hearing Tuesday will be General Kearney, though it is unclear whether he will comply with the request.
Also scheduled to testify is Sgt. First Class Scott R. Haarer, a paralegal on General Kearney’s staff last October who, as part of the military justice procedure, signed the forms that charged Captain Staffel and Sergeant Anderson with murder.
In a notarized statement, Sergeant Haarer told defense lawyers last week that he would not have accused the soldiers of any crime if he had known that the Criminal Investigation Command had determined that the shooting was justified.
This doesn't sound good at all when a commander won't listen to the investigative service that clears the soldiers of wrong doing.
General Frank H. Kearney should be stripped of his commission and tried for treason.
He is undermining the mission at the expense of our soldiers. He’s had an axe to grind regarding rules of engagement and excessive force even when official investigations show no wrongdoing.
It’s time for our CiC to do something about this so-called “general.”
But to the two-star general in charge of the Special Operations forces in Afghanistan at the time, Frank H. Kearney, who has since become a three-star general, the episode appeared to be an unauthorized, illegal killing. In June, after two military investigations, General Kearney moved to have murder charges brought against Captain Staffel and Sergeant Anderson..............The soldiers’ cases also highlight the level of scrutiny that General Kearney, who also ordered swift investigations into an elite Marine unit accused of killing Afghan civilians last March, has given to the actions of some of the most specialized and independent American troops fighting Taliban and insurgent forces along the border with Pakistan.
Mark Waple, a civilian lawyer representing Captain Staffel, said the charges against his client and Sergeant Anderson carry a whiff of “military politics.” In an interview, Mr. Waple said that General Kearney proceeded with murder charges against the two soldiers even after an investigation by the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command concluded in April that the shooting had been “justifiable homicide.”
Let me just add this, I was referring to Murtha, General Kearney, Hillary, etc,. when I meant “thank god they were not around during WWII” Not our soldiers. Just posting that to clarify what I was referring to!
General Frank H. Kearney
This is the case you alerted me to that O’Reilly is covering. He said last night he was going to stay on it. Media coverage will help.
This is ridiculous. I recall all the talk about how Bush was going to revitalize the demoralized military after eight years of Clinton. Letting the ignorant Leftist JAG’s f*ck the troops time and again, I conclude that things are worse now. If we’re not going to fight and win, then we should get the hell out.
Sending our troops into a battle zone, then placing lawyers in charge, is a quick recipe for suicide.
Rules of engagement, my a**. Find the enemy, kill the enemy. Do this as many times as necessary, until the enemy surrenders.
This guy was a bomb maker! Why are these two even being considered to stand trial?
I think it is clear this @sshole has an agenda. Prolly grooming himself to run as a democrat somewhere after retirement............
It is a statement to the courage of the kids joining and serving today that they have to bear the burden of this PC crap while staying alive and fighting a war. Micromanagement is what totally screwed us up in Viet Nam, and this dork is hard at it now.
And, twice at that! (WWI)
He looks like every a$$hole I have ever met.
I swear my Dad served with or under this guy. The name sounds familiar, the age is right, and jump wings.
This is why my son left the Corps.
And he is worried about being recalled - not because of the combat - been that and has the tshirt...the lawyers have him scared.
Just WTF?
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