News & Politics - U.S. soldier sentenced to 100 years

migamoo · 02-23-2007, 12:59 PM

Quote:

U.S. soldier sentenced to 100 years for rape, murder - Yahoo! News

FT. CAMPBELL, Kentucky (Reuters) - A U.S. soldier who pleaded guilty to raping and murdering a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and killing her family was sentenced to 100 years in a military prison, the U.S. Army said on Thursday.

Sgt. Paul Cortez, 24, was also given a dishonorable discharge under a plea agreement he reached with prosecutors prior to a court-martial that spanned three days, an Army spokesman said.

Cortez, of Barstow, California, was not eligible for the death penalty under his plea agreement, accepted by the court on Wednesday.

Col. Stephen R. Henley, the military judge, found Cortez guilty of conspiracy to commit rape, four counts of felony murder, rape, housebreaking and violating a general order.

Under terms of his plea agreement, Cortez agreed to testify against the three others still facing prosecution in the case.

During the court-martial, a sometimes emotional Cortez recounted how he and his companions drank whiskey, played cards and plotted to attack the family at Mahmudiya, south of Baghdad, in March 2006. The group poured kerosene on the girl's body and lit her on fire in an attempt to cover up the crime.

Cortez testified that Spc. James Barker, who also pleaded guilty in the case, and a since-discharged soldier, Pvt. Steven Green, chose the family to attack because there was only one man in the house and it was an "easy target."

Once at the house, Green, the suspected ringleader, took the girl's mother, father and little sister into a bedroom, Cortez said, while he and Barker took the teenager, Abeer Qassim al-Janabi, to the living room, where they took turns raping her.

He said Green, who has been charged as a civilian and awaits trial in a Kentucky jail, shot the girl's family in another room and then raped the teenager.

The deaths of the girl and her family outraged Iraqis and ratcheted up tension in the war zone.

Barker pleaded guilty in November and was sentenced to 90 years in a military prison. Green was discharged from the Army for a "personality disorder."

Two other soldiers are accused in the case, Pvt. Jesse Spielman and Pvt. Bryan Howard.

(Additional reporting by John Sommers at Ft. Campbell)

I'm glad he wasn't eligible for the death penalty, it gives him his whole life to think about what he did.

Papri · 02-23-2007, 01:23 PM

This is sickening.

I'm curious as to what military prisons are like though and how he'll be treated once inside - I sure as hell hope it isn't one of these cushy little numbers.

The US military in Iraq are effectively the chief policing force - we're told every day that they're there to ensure stability and security...and while I have no doubt that the vast majority would never do anything like this, it makes you wonder what other stuff has been going on. And once stories like this get out, it's only going to heighten tensions in Iraq even more.

elisheva · 02-23-2007, 01:29 PM

I think it's important that incidents like these are dealt with harshly. It shows you can't get away with acting on your worst impulses just because you're a soldier, or in another country.

kutu · 02-23-2007, 01:35 PM

I usually don't post on this board but I saw this on the news and I'm speechless. Those men are just sick, I can't believe the cold blood they showed (playing cards before they did it, choosing that family cause they were an easy target since there was only man in the house...).

Lexis · 02-23-2007, 02:15 PM

It is important that the US handle this kind of thing harshly to send the message that this is not acceptable and America won't let those that do this get away with it.

**sunnykerr** · 02-23-2007, 07:15 PM

He was dishonourably discharged, though, right? Doesn't that mean he goes to "real" prison. God, I hope so. That man, and his co-horts, give their brothers and sisters in arms a bad name.

And it is important that cases like these be treated with the upmost severity. Otherwise, you're just opening the door for the remaining troops to face all the more resentment and aggression when they are in combat zones.

And I, too, am glad he didn't get the death penalty. The death penalty is an easy way out for cowards such as this poor excuse for a human being. Let him live a long, long, life, caged like the animal he is, contemplating the nature of his actions.

migamoo · 02-23-2007, 11:08 PM

Nope, he still goes to military prison.

S.A.S.H.A. · 02-24-2007, 02:52 AM

Ugh, it's crimes like this that make it difficult for me to support human rights for savages of this kind.

Sasha

*Jamie* · 02-24-2007, 10:31 AM

Employees of The Haliburton Group have been investigated several times over allegations of rape of minors and yet they're still allowed to remain in Iraq on a no-bid contract awarded by the US government ( both the company and the employees ). Makes you wonder how serious they are about the problem.

**sunnykerr** · 02-26-2007, 05:46 PM

So, I know nothing on this at all. What is the difference between military prison and regular prison? Aside from the fact that, presumably all prisoners are former military...

Indian Summer · 02-26-2007, 05:57 PM

I don't know a lot, but I'm pretty sure there's a different law code for military prisoners. For instance, I think any military convict sentenced to 7+ years ends up at the Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, KS, as opposed to a prison close to home. As far as I know, the Disciplinary Barracks is specifically for US Military convicted of crimes serving 7+ years, but I'm not sure. I think it's generally harsher than civillian prison though.

jalapeno_wildchild · 02-26-2007, 07:16 PM

what a sad story. at least the people responsible are being punished. the whole thing makes me sick to my stomache.

migamoo · 02-27-2007, 06:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Indian Summer (View Post)

I think it's generally harsher than civillian prison though.

I would hope so as it is the military.

Indian Summer · 02-27-2007, 05:08 PM

Yeah, but in all honesty, I'm not sure about that. I know it used to be, but the USDB was recently done over- new policy, new building, etc. I think there's a man in the process of writing a book about what life is like in USDB, both the "old" and the new systems. He was recently paroled out, I guess. From what I understand, it's harder to get good time added on, but there's some kind of relationship between the USDB and the federal prison- I don't know exactly how it works, but I guess inmates at USDB can petition the federal system for certain rights.

rose parade · 02-27-2007, 08:10 PM

Ugh, pretty much describes this.


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