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| 5/28 |
| 2004/5/13-14 [Politics/Domestic/Crime, Politics/Foreign/MiddleEast/Iraq] UID:30214 Activity:very high |
5/12 First Court Martial Defendant Details Prison Abuse
http://csua.org/u/7aw
Sivits, who according to sources is expected to plead guilty at a
court-martial proceeding next week in Baghdad ... maintained,
according to the documents, that all of this was done without the
knowledge of their superiors in the Army chain of command. "Our
command would have slammed us," he said. "They believe in doing the
right thing. If they saw what was going on, there would be hell to
pay." ... All the other soldiers are expected to plead not guilty.
... But Sivits stressed that it was Graner and Frederick who led the
small band of guards in their nightly revelries. "I was laughing at
some of the stuff that they had them do," he conceded. "I was
disgusted at some of the stuff as well. As I think about it now, I
do not thing any of it was funny." Asked specifically what was not
funny, he said, "the tower thing" - referring to prisoners being
forced to strip and form a pyramid on the floor.
\_ If they all knew it was wrong, and knew they would get in
trouble... WHY THE FREAK DID THE PHOTOGRAPHI IT? How stupid
can you be?
\_ yer tellin me (NY Post:)
"[Pfc. Lynndie England ] was having sex with numerous partners.
It appeared to be consensual," said a lawmaker who saw the
photos. And, videos showed the disgraced soldier ... engaged in
graphic sex acts with other soldiers in front of Iraqi prisoners
... "Almost everybody was naked all the time" ... Many members
of Congress left the 45-minute viewing session early, thereby
missing the porno performance by England, but there were enough
other images of torture, humiliation and intimidation to sicken
anyone. ... Rep. Jane Harman (Calif.), ranking Democrat on the
House Intelligence Committee, said she was most appalled by a
video of a handcuffed prisoner beating his head against a wall
in an apparent bid to knock himself unconscious to escape abuse.
\_ Having sex with other soldiers on film is stupid but hardly
torture by the geneva convention. Why even bother reporting
this?
\_ This is contradictory to what other accused soldiers claimed.
Maybe he has been softened up by a plea bargain or other tactics?
\_ It's also possible that soldiers pleading innocent are just
trying to get a lighter sentence by claiming it was leadership's
fault. It could also be that Rumsfeld / the Pentagon accepted
only Sivits' story, and ignored everyone else's.
I sure hope the full investigation resolves this.
\_ This isn't your sissy civilian court where they are trying to
get through as many pimps and drug pushers in an hour as
possible. The military doesn't need to 'plea bargain' with some
dip shit junior grade nobody. The guy isn't even a minor
officer. IIRC, he was in the reserves. Sheesh. He isn't
getting off easier in any way by pleading guilty. There is no
deal. Ditch the tinfoil hat.
\_ Do you think they'll give any of them the death penelty?
I'm unfamiliar with current military law, but it seems
like the right situation. |
| 5/28 |
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| csua.org/u/7aw -> www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/iraq/la-051304sivits_lat,1,4430352.story Partners KTLA Hoy 3:35 PM PDT, May 13, 2004 E-mail story Print First Court Martial Defendant Details Prison Abuse Commentary One Year Later Graphics Series: Guard Goes to War Complete Coverage Iraq Casualties US Soldiers Killed Complete Coverage Abu Ghraib Guard Paints Harrowing Portrait of Abuse Marines Walk Softly and Carry a Big Stack Marine Killed in Convoy CIA Says Zarqawi Was Man Who Beheaded Berg Iraqi Teachers Learn Hard Political Lesson more > Subscribe GO By Richard A Serrano, Times Staff Writer WASHINGTON -- The first soldier who will be court-martialed in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal has told military authorities a harrowing tale of how a group of guards led by Cpl. Charles A Graner joked and mocked the Iraqi detainees as they stripped them naked, struck and kicked them, and, in the crudest of humiliations, forced them to hit each other. In an interview with Army criminal investigators, Spc. Jeremy Sivits said that Graner was always "joking, laughing, pissed off a little, acting like he was enjoying it," according to documents obtained today by the Los Angeles Times. Sivits, who according to sources is expected to plead guilty at a court-martial proceeding next week in Baghdad, also gave fresh details about the other suspects in the beating of Iraqi prisoners - for the first time describing their moods as the prisoners were stripped and abused. He also maintained, according to the documents, that all of this was done without the knowledge of their superiors in the Army chain of command. Graner's lawyers have said he and other soldiers were under pressure by military interrogators to "soften up" the detainees to get intelligence. All the other soldiers are expected to plead not guilty. Sivits said he first became aware of the abuse, and began photographing much of it, on Oct. November dates believed to have been the start of the harsh treatment against inmates in the overcrowded prison. Sgt. Ivan L (Chip) Frederick II seemed "mellow" as he abused prisoners and watched other guards join in, Sivits said. Just kind of enjoying it," Sivits said. He described Pfc. That is a marked difference from England's defense, in which she has claimed that she was ordered to pose in front of the abused inmates. Sivits said Spc. He added, "She did write the word rapist on the side of the leg of one of the inmates. She did this after she had found out from the processing sheets that he had raped someone. But Sivits stressed that it was Graner and Frederick who led the small band of guards in their nightly revelries. Asked specifically what was not funny, he said, "the tower thing" - referring to prisoners being forced to strip and form a pyramid on the floor. He described Graner striking inmates, and Sgt. Javal Davis, another of the suspects, running across the floor and jumping on them when they were handcuffed and piled on the floor. Davis would land on them," he said. Davis had done this, Davis then stomped on either the fingers or toes of the detainees. He recalled that the prisoners usually were reluctant to strip in front of each other, and that Graner forced them to do so anyway. He said Graner punched a detainee in the head so hard the man fell unconscious. Sivits said. They later had to check to see he was breathing. Another time two inmates were told to strike each other. They first refused, Sivits said, and then complied. TMS Reprints Article licensing and reprint options Copyright 2004 Los Angeles Times By visiting this site, you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy Terms of Service. |