For background on the case, click on the LINK. Sgt Corrales' wife, Lily, would appreciate support and prayers.
Posted on 04/23/2008 6:17:36 PM PDT by RedRover
WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii — The lawyer for a Hawaii-based soldier accused of killing an unarmed Iraqi last year said the defense won't contest that his client shot the man.
But defense attorney Frank Spinner said the shooting was neither unlawful nor premeditated.
Contradicting the prosecution in the court-martial of Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales, of San Antonio, Spinner said the soldier didn't order a subordinate in his platoon to shoot the Iraqi, whose name has not been disclosed.
The court-martial is expected to last at least through this week at Wheeler Army Airfield on Oahu.
Corrales has pleaded not guilty to premeditated murder.
For background on the case, click on the LINK. Sgt Corrales' wife, Lily, would appreciate support and prayers.
Having been there three times I am more than willing to give the first class the benefit of the doubt on this one. What pisses me off more than anything is all these prosecutors have never been in a position when their lives were ever in imminent danger. Sometimes you just do what you have to do to protect the good people and bring all your soldiers back to the CP each night in one piece.
Thanks for posting this, Red. SFC Corrales has my support in his presumption of innocence. Though not being familiar with the case it seems to me like another instance of a PC prosecution.
I’m with you. We can only hope that the jury will make a fair and considered judgment.
I wonder if the man they shot was on their “find list”?
Yes, it unfortunately has the look of a political prosecution. CID investigators played their usual dodgy role as well (there’s an article or two about this at the link above).
I’ll read them and try to catch up on the case, thanks.
The problem with most Courts Mattial juries is they are usually composed of senior officer and enlisteds. Most, if not all, have never carried a weapon in a combat zone and been in imminent danger, especially in Iraq. Vietnam Vets are either retired or so senior that they will not sit on a jury. Desert Storm was too brief and we did not encounter insurgent scenarios like we are now. You cannot identify with that kind of combat mentality if you have never been there.
Thanks for the heads up here RedRover. I will keep the good Sgt and family in my thoughts. Here’s to a rightful outcome. What times we live in...
Great job, Red! Thanks for posting this!
I had the pleasure of speaking with Lily Corrales when the charges first came out. We had a long conversation, gave each other support and hope. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone as they go through this terrible ordeal. May God bless them and keep them strong.
Ofercryinoutloud! This is getting ridiculous! Let the troops do their jobs!
Iraqi Arabic translator testifies at Corrales court-martial, Associated Press, April 24, 2008
WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii — An Iraqi Arabic language interpreter has testified for the prosecution in the Hawaii court-martial trial of Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales. He's accused of fatally shooting an unarmed Iraqi last year.
Interpreter Essa Ahmed says platoon leader Corrales called him out of a house near Kirkuk where he was interpreting for his platoon and asked him for the Arabic word for "run."
Ahmed says when he provided the word, Corrales repeated it to the unidentified man, who then pleaded: "Why, Mister? Why, Mister?"
Ahmed told a nine-member jury he heard four shots from the yard after he returned to the house.
The interpreter had flown to Hawaii from Iraq to testify in the court-martial.
Corrales' platoon raided the house to look for insurgents they suspected of planting roadside bombs.
Corrales, of San Antonio, is accused of shooting the man after he surrendered to the platoon.
WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii — A Hawaii-based soldier accused of killing an unarmed Iraqi last year has admitted shooting the man.
Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales, of San Antonio, says he fired after seeing the man standing in the backyard of a house his platoon had just raided in search of insurgents.
Corrales says he told the man in Arabic to freeze and put his hands in the air but the man started to run.
Corrales says he raised his weapon and fired four shots at the man.
Corrales is testifying at his court-martial at Wheeler Army Airfield.
Other witnesses say Corrales shot the man after dragging him outside after he had already surrendered to the platoon.
The incident happened in June near Kirkuk in northern Iraq.
Corrales' platoon raided the house to look for insurgents they suspected of planting roadside bombs.
Thats a good question lily? I’ve wonder about that too. They tell them to find these men and kill them then turn around and charge them with murder.
Hey you know you inspired that question!
Soldier admits shooting Iraqi man, but calls it justified, Associated Press, April 25, 2008.
WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii (AP) — A Hawaii-based soldier accused of killing an unarmed Iraqi last year admitted shooting the man, but said he believed it was justified after the Iraqi tried to flee the backyard of a house the soldier's platoon had just raided in search of insurgents.
Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales, who is being court-martialed for premeditated murder, said Thursday that he told the man in Arabic to freeze and to put his hands in the air, but the man started to run.
Corrales, of San Antonio, said he then raised his weapon and fired four shots at him.
"I knew it was a hostile area," Corrales told the nine-member panel serving on the military justice system's equivalent of a jury. "I knew he couldn't be up to anything good."
He said he acted on instinct.
Corrales has also been charged with wrongfully soliciting another soldier to shoot the Iraqi man and with wrongfully obstructing an investigation by planting an AK-47 on the victim. He has pleaded not guilty to all three charges.
Prosecutors have argued Corrales deliberately took the man from the house to its backyard after the Iraqi's hands tested positive for explosives. They say Corrales told the man to run and then shot him.
The incident happened during a late-night raid on a house near Kirkuk in northern Iraq that lasted until the early hours of June 23. The Army hasn't been able to identify the man.
Corrales' unit, the 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, deployed to the region for 15 months starting in the summer of 2006. Corrales acted as the leader for an elite scout platoon tasked with reconnaissance and surveillance missions.
He said he believed he acted correctly in shooting the man, but acknowledged he was troubled afterward when he learned the man was unarmed.
"I knew it was a gray area of the (rules of engagement), but if you're going to get into a fight with someone and they don't fight back it doesn't feel too good inside," Corrales said.
The sergeant also admitted to threatening to kill the man earlier during interrogation inside the house.
But he said he only did so as a tactic to get the man to tell him where he had hidden AK-47s Corrales believed had been used to fire at U.S. helicopters earlier in the day. Corrales said he didn't intend to follow through on the threat.
He said he didn't know how the man managed to get to the backyard after he questioned him.
A Honolulu-based forensic psychologist called by the defense, Marvin Acklin, said that at the time of the shooting Corrales was worried an insurgent might still have been in the backyard.
He said the sergeant also expected a hostile confrontation as the platoon raided the house.
With that in mind, Acklin said he believed Corrales "acted appropriately according to his training in response to a situation as he understood it."
Earlier Thursday, an Iraqi interpreter for the platoon testified that Corrales called him out of the house to the backyard where he was standing with the Iraqi man.
Essa Ahmed, who flew to Hawaii for the court-martial, said Corrales asked him for the Arabic word for "run."
When Ahmed told Corrales it was "orkuth," the sergeant repeated it to the man, prompting the man to say: "Why, Mister? Why, Mister?"
Ahmed said he went back inside the house and then heard four shots fired.
The court recessed after the defense and prosecution finished calling their witnesses Thursday. Closing arguments were set for Friday.
WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii — The prosecution in the court martial of a soldier accused of killing an unarmed Iraqi last year says Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales planned the shooting, carried it out and then tried to cover it up.
Corrales, of San Antonio, was based in Hawaii.
The prosecution and defense made their closing arguments before the jury began deliberations at Wheeler Army Airfield.
Prosecutor Capt. Laura O'Donnell said Corrales took an Iraqi detainee into the backyard of a house near Kirkuk that his platoon was raiding and then shot him.
She says it was premeditated murder.
Corrales' defense attorney, Frank Spinner, challenged the credibility of the government's witnesses.
Two-thirds of the nine-member jury must find the platoon sergeant guilty for him to be convicted.
The Mai Lai syndrome strikes again.
Why does the “Why, Mister, Why Mister?” ring a bell? Doesn’t this sound familiar?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.