Trump pardons former Army soldier sentenced for killing Iraqi prisoner

[enhanced_deficit]

This is probably 3rd or 4th high profile pardon by MAGA stemming from 2008 case involving killing of an Iraqi in custody:



Witness claims U.S. soldier stripped, shot Iraqi
Two face charges of premeditated murder in desert slaying of detainee

9/22/2008

CAMP SPEICHER, Iraq — A U.S. soldier accused in the killing of an Iraqi detainee kept the man blindfolded and bound in the back of an armored vehicle for more than two hours before taking him into the desert where he was slain, a comrade testified on Monday.

Military prosecutors have accused 1st Lt. Michael C. Behenna of stripping the detainee naked, shooting him in the head and chest and then watching as another soldier set fire to the body with an incendiary grenade. He also allegedly tried to cover up the killing.

Behenna and the other soldier, Staff Sgt. Hal M. Warner, face charges of premeditated murder, assault, making a false official statement and obstruction of justice, according to the U.S. military. A similar hearing was held earlier this month for Warner, who also is charged with being an accessory after the fact.
Both men could face life in prison without parole if tried and convicted.

Prosecutors presented several witnesses, including soldiers who were part of Behenna's convoy on the day of the alleged killing, as they wrapped up a two-day hearing to determine whether the evidence against Behenna was sufficient for a court-martial. It is akin to a grand jury hearing.

Spc. Cody Atkinson testified Monday that the four-vehicle convoy left the base on May 16 tasked with dropping off two detainees, including Mohammed.

The troops released the first prisoner, who was not named, but kept Mohammed in the back of one of the armored vehicles known as MRAPs for about two hours while visiting a local sheik, Atkinson said.
Atkinson said he expressed concern that Mohammed had not been released as ordered.

"I said the guy is still in back, but Staff Sgt. Warner said 'don't worry about it, we'll figure it out,'" Atkinson said.
Then the convoy stopped in the desert, near the U.S. forward operating base, Summerall. The base is near Beiji, 155 miles (250 kilometers) north of Baghdad.
Behenna then removed Mohammed — who was wearing a blue camouflage T-shirt that said "One Tough Recruit" and apparently praying — from the truck, while Warner grabbed a grenade, Atkinson added.
The three then walked with a military translator toward a tunnel under railroad tracks, Atkinson said, adding they disappeared from view so he didn't know what happened next.
After some time, they saw a light that radiated an orange glow, then the two soldiers and the translator returned after about 20 or 30 minutes without Mohammed, Atkinson and other witnesses said.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/26841253/...itness-claims-us-soldier-stripped-shot-iraqi/



Trump pardons former Army soldier sentenced for killing Iraqi prisoner

By Kate Sullivan, CNN

Mon May 6, 2019

FILE - In this Sunday, Sept. 21, 2008, file photo, 1st Lt. Michael C. Behenna, left, and his defense attorney Capt. Tom Clark, right, walk in Camp Speicher, a large U.S. base near Tikrit, north of Baghdad, Iraq. The White House announced Monday, May 6, 2019, that President Donald Trump pardoned Behenna, a former U.S. soldier convicted in 2009 of killing an Iraqi prisoner. (AP Photo/Vanessa Gera, File)

Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump on Monday granted a pardon to a former first lieutenant in the US Army who was sentenced to prison in 2009 for killing an Iraqi detainee, according to the White House.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders announced that Michael Behenna, of Oklahoma, would receive a full pardon. In a statement, Sanders said Behenna had been sentenced to 25 years in prison for unpremeditated murder in a combat zone by a military court, but there were issues involving his case.
"After judgment, however, the U.S. Army's highest appellate court noted concern about how the trial court had handled Mr. Behenna's claim of self-defense," Sanders said in the statement.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/06/politics/trump-pardon-us-soldier-iraq/index.html




Related

Ex-soldier talks about slaying of Iraqi family
He says he didn't think of Iraqi civilians as humans after being exposed to extreme war zone violence

12/19/2010
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/40739938/.../ex-soldier-talks-about-slaying-iraqi-family/


Trump pardons Jack Johnson erasing conviction for violating Anti White Slave Act
05/25/2018
Jack Johnson Was Pardoned, But Taboo Sex Is Still Being Criminalized

President Trump commutes sentence of Sholom Rubashkin, ex-Iowa slaughterhouse executive
Dec. 20, 2017
President Donald Trump on Wednesday commuted the prison sentence of former Iowa slaughterhouse executive Sholom Rubashkin, who was sentenced to 27 years for bank fraud and money laundering, the White House said.

 

[Swordsmyth]

[h=2]President Donald Trump pardoned Army Lieutenant Michael Behenna, who was prosecuted and convicted of killing prisoner Ali Mansur Mohamed during his deployment in Iraq.[/h] Behenna was convicted in 2009 of the unpremeditated murder of Mohamed, despite his claim that he acted in self-defense after Mohamed reached for his gun. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison but was released early on parole.
Trump’s pardon came just days after Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter sent a letter to Trump requesting a pardon for Behenna.
“Mr. Behenna’s case has attracted broad support from the military, Oklahoma elected officials, and the public,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement to reporters, noting that 37 military generals and admirals and a former Inspector General of the Department of Defense signed a brief in support of Mr. Behenna’s claim.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/05/06/donald-trump-pardons-army-lieutenant-michael-behenna/

 

[Swordsmyth]

UNRelated

Ex-soldier talks about slaying of Iraqi family
He says he didn't think of Iraqi civilians as humans after being exposed to extreme war zone violence

12/19/2010
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/40739938/.../ex-soldier-talks-about-slaying-iraqi-family/

Fixed it.

 

[enhanced_deficit]

It showed up next to other nbcnews but how is that un-related? War violence very likely will impact psyche of two guys convicted by US military for war crimes even if to different degrees.

 

[Swordsmyth]

It should up next to other nbcnews but how is that un-related? War violence very likely will impact psyche of two guys convicted by US military for war crimes.

One person's guilt is completely unrelated to another case, we might as well list all of the people who weren't guilty of things they were accused of or who actually were defending themselves when they killed someone if we are just going to post random cases that are not connected to this one.

 

[enhanced_deficit]

This was not to evaluate quality of trials held by US military that led to the two war crimes convictions, that can be discussed though.
It can be seen as suggestion that war violence needs to be examined/tried also as it certainly impacts emotions and psyche of those in the middle of it.
To say with certitude that it is 'un-related' would mean you can say with certitude that one of the convicted guys was certianly guilty and the other was certainly innocent, neither of us know that. Just going by US military convictions in both cases that were based on witness fellow soldiers testimonies.

 

[Swordsmyth]

This was not to evaluate quality of trials held by US military that led to the two war crimes convictions, that can be discussed though.
It can be seen as suggestion that war violence needs to be examined/tried also as it certainly impacts emotions and psyche of those in the middle of it.
To say with certitude that it is 'un-related' would mean you can say with certitude that one of the convicted guys was certianly guilty and the other was certainly innocent, neither of us know that. Just going by US military convictions in both cases that were based on witness fellow soldiers testimonies.

You would have to show that this soldier didn't think of Iraqis as humans before you could say they were related, claiming they are related without any evidence just prejudicially implies that he didn't think of Iraqis as humans.

 

[Swordsmyth]

[h=1]Army Lieutenant Behenna On Hannity[/h]

 

[Swordsmyth]

Army Lieutenant Behenna On Hannity

The prosecution suppressed exculpatory evidence.

 

[Swordsmyth]

The prosecution suppressed exculpatory evidence.

Oklahoma’s attorney general first requested a pardon for Behenna in February 2018 and renewed his request last month. Attorney General Mike Hunter said he believed Behenna’s conviction was unjustified because of erroneous jury instructions and the failure of prosecutors to turn over evidence supporting a self-defense claim.

More at: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/may/6/michael-behenna-pardoned-donald-trump/

 

[RonZeplin]

Sholom Rubashkin and his ~382 illegal alien employees

This is probably 3rd or 4th high profile pardon by MAGA stemming from 2008 case involving killing of an Iraqi in custody:


President Trump commutes sentence of Sholom Rubashkin, ex-Iowa slaughterhouse executive
Dec. 20, 2017
President Donald Trump on Wednesday commuted the prison sentence of former Iowa slaughterhouse executive Sholom Rubashkin, who was sentenced to 27 years for bank fraud and money laundering, the White House said.

Due to his employing ~382 Illegal Aliens at his kosher meat packing plant.

Not a crime for a Reconquista Republican with New York Values like Donald J. Trump.

 

[TheCount]

Something something rule of law