bobdina
12-07-2009, 11:53 AM
2 of 3 accused SEALs to appear in court Monday
By Larry O’Dell - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Dec 7, 2009 5:23:23 EST
RICHMOND, Va. — Two Navy SEALs are scheduled to be arraigned Monday in military court on charges that they mistreated an Iraqi suspect in the gory slayings of four U.S. contractors in Fallujah.
One of the SEALs is accused of punching the detainee after his September arrest, while the other is accused of lying to investigators. A third SEAL also accused of lying to investigators about the episode will be arraigned later.
All three men have men have received an outpouring of support from people who view them as heroes. A Facebook page created to support the SEALs had more than 45,000 members as of Friday, and a California congressman is spearheading a campaign to persuade Defense Secretary Robert Gates to intervene.
Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class 2nd Class Matthew McCabe of Perrysburg, Ohio, and Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class 2nd Class Jonathan Keefe of Yorktown, Va., and Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Julio Huertas of Blue Island, Ill., face courts-martial at a date to be determined. Keefe’s arraignment has been continued.
The men refused an administrative process known as “nonjudicial punishment” because they feared unfair treatment by military brass, said Neal Puckett, an attorney for McCabe.
“They felt they had already been determined to be guilty,” said Puckett.
By refusing to accept the reprimand, the men could face a more serious penalty at court-martial, which will be determined by a six-person military jury.
If the men are convicted, they could face up to a year in a military jail, a bad conduct discharge or loss of pay, said Puckett, a retired Marine Corps officer and judge advocate.
McCabe, 24, is charged with assault. All three men also are charged with dereliction of duty and lying to investigators, and Huertas is charged with impeding an investigation.
Puckett said the charges stem from an alleged “punch in the gut” after the SEALs captured the Iraqi in early September. Puckett said the men are not guilty, and that he also has been bombarded with calls and e-mails from people who say that even if the detainee was punched, it’s “a minor affront” compared to what he is suspected of doing.
Army Lt. Col. Holly Silkman, a spokeswoman for the military’s Special Operations Command Center, urged the public to withhold judgment until the evidence is heard.
“This is much more involved than the defense would lead you to believe,” Silkman said.
Ahmed Hashim Abed is believed to be connected to the 2004 killings of four Blackwater security guards who were protecting a convoy when they were attacked by Iraqi insurgents. Their burned corpses were dragged through the city, and two of them were hung from a bridge over the Euphrates River.
A military official confirmed that Abed is the detainee who claimed he was assaulted. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the detainee publicly.
U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., wrote a letter to Gates last week expressing “grave concerns” about the prosecution of the SEALs. More than two dozen of Hunter’s colleagues signed the letter, saying military officials overreacted.
“As we understand it, there was no allegation of torture or abuse,” Hunter wrote.
Charging documents were not released because they contain classified information, Silkman said, so details about the alleged offenses remain sketchy. The SEALs, based at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Norfolk, are not in custody.
By Larry O’Dell - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Dec 7, 2009 5:23:23 EST
RICHMOND, Va. — Two Navy SEALs are scheduled to be arraigned Monday in military court on charges that they mistreated an Iraqi suspect in the gory slayings of four U.S. contractors in Fallujah.
One of the SEALs is accused of punching the detainee after his September arrest, while the other is accused of lying to investigators. A third SEAL also accused of lying to investigators about the episode will be arraigned later.
All three men have men have received an outpouring of support from people who view them as heroes. A Facebook page created to support the SEALs had more than 45,000 members as of Friday, and a California congressman is spearheading a campaign to persuade Defense Secretary Robert Gates to intervene.
Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class 2nd Class Matthew McCabe of Perrysburg, Ohio, and Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class 2nd Class Jonathan Keefe of Yorktown, Va., and Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Julio Huertas of Blue Island, Ill., face courts-martial at a date to be determined. Keefe’s arraignment has been continued.
The men refused an administrative process known as “nonjudicial punishment” because they feared unfair treatment by military brass, said Neal Puckett, an attorney for McCabe.
“They felt they had already been determined to be guilty,” said Puckett.
By refusing to accept the reprimand, the men could face a more serious penalty at court-martial, which will be determined by a six-person military jury.
If the men are convicted, they could face up to a year in a military jail, a bad conduct discharge or loss of pay, said Puckett, a retired Marine Corps officer and judge advocate.
McCabe, 24, is charged with assault. All three men also are charged with dereliction of duty and lying to investigators, and Huertas is charged with impeding an investigation.
Puckett said the charges stem from an alleged “punch in the gut” after the SEALs captured the Iraqi in early September. Puckett said the men are not guilty, and that he also has been bombarded with calls and e-mails from people who say that even if the detainee was punched, it’s “a minor affront” compared to what he is suspected of doing.
Army Lt. Col. Holly Silkman, a spokeswoman for the military’s Special Operations Command Center, urged the public to withhold judgment until the evidence is heard.
“This is much more involved than the defense would lead you to believe,” Silkman said.
Ahmed Hashim Abed is believed to be connected to the 2004 killings of four Blackwater security guards who were protecting a convoy when they were attacked by Iraqi insurgents. Their burned corpses were dragged through the city, and two of them were hung from a bridge over the Euphrates River.
A military official confirmed that Abed is the detainee who claimed he was assaulted. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the detainee publicly.
U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., wrote a letter to Gates last week expressing “grave concerns” about the prosecution of the SEALs. More than two dozen of Hunter’s colleagues signed the letter, saying military officials overreacted.
“As we understand it, there was no allegation of torture or abuse,” Hunter wrote.
Charging documents were not released because they contain classified information, Silkman said, so details about the alleged offenses remain sketchy. The SEALs, based at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Norfolk, are not in custody.