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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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December 12th,
2006 - Four Hamdania Defendants no longer getting Paid |
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Four Hamdania Defendants no longer
getting Paid By Mark Walker North County Times Tuesday, December 12, 2006 10:57 PM PST Camp Pendleton - In the brig
and facing the possibility of life prison sentences, the four remaining
defendants in the slaying of a retired Iraqi policeman earlier this year have
had their enlistments expire and are no longer getting paid or receiving
benefits. They also were not asked or
given a chance by the Marine Corps to re-enlist. Attorneys for three of the
four men still facing trial in the April 26 death of Hashim Ibrahim Awad say
they wish the Marine Corps had exercised the discretion they say it could
have and given their clients the chance to re-enlist so they would still get
their monthly pay. "They're doing it
because they don't want him to have the ability to pay (for his defense) and
'innocent until proven guilty' obviously wasn't part of the analysis,"
said Joseph Low, who represents Cpl. Marshall Magincalda. "It makes me
mad that not only did they take his money, they refuse to pay for a defense
investigator and won't provide just a little bit of money to find the
exculpatory evidence the government left behind." Those still facing trial
also have at least two military attorneys provided at no cost assisting their
civilian attorneys, and do receive needed health care services as they await
trial while house in the brig at Camp Pendleton. Four of their squad mates also
charged in the case pleaded guilty to lesser offenses and are in the brig at
Miramar Marine Corps Air Station. The pay and enlistment status of those four
was not immediately available. One defendant whose case is
undecided has requested an extension of his enlistment, but the Marine Corps
on Tuesday would not say who had done so because, a spokesman said, the
process is not complete. The spokesman, Lt. Esteban
Vickers, said Marine Corps officials are abiding by regulations that say an
enlisted service member kept in the military for the purpose of court-martial
is not entitled to any further pay or benefits when their enlistment expires. Vickers also pointed to a
companion regulation that says a service member in the brig, which is the
case for all the men in the Awad case, loses all pay and allowances on the
date his enlistment expires. That date came recently for
Cpl. Trent D. Thomas, his civilian attorney Victor Kelley said. "He's been in no-pay
status for about a month," Kelley said. "I am representing him
basically on a pro bono basis because I made a promise to Cpl. Thomas. "As a retired Marine, I
know the hell he has been through and I'm not going to abandon him." Kelley said that while he
was disappointed the Marine Corps did not waive the regulation and continue
to pay the defendants who have not been convicted of any crime, he was
grateful for efforts the service is making on behalf of his client and other
defendants to put them and their dependents in touch with social service
agencies and other support groups. In addition, in the case of
Thomas, who is married and has a child, his family has 12 more months of
entitlement to base housing and related services, including dependent
medical, dental and vision coverage. David Brahms, a retired
general who once served as the legal adviser to the commandant of the Marine
Corps, said the brass could have waived the no-pay regulation for the men
whose cases remain undecided. "It's a question of
will," said Brahms, who now has a private practice in Carlsbad and is
representing Lance Cpl. Robert Pennington. "Regulations can be waived in
circumstances like this or they could have had their enlistments
extended." Pennington faces a trial
date of March 19. Thomas' trial date is March 12 and Magincalda is scheduled
to go to trial Feb. 1. The other defendant whose
case is unresolved, Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III, is set to go to trial April
23. Kelley said that in the case
of Thomas, there have "been some discussions" regarding a possible
plea agreement, but Low said he does not believe there will be more plea
deals in the case. The four men to reach plea
agreements in the Awad killing are: Navy Petty Officer Melson Bacos, Lance
Cpls. Tyler Jackson and Jerry Shumate Jr., and Pfc. John Jodka III. Each
pleaded guilty to lesser offenses than the original charges of murder,
kidnapping conspiracy, assault and other crimes in the kidnapping and killing
that occurred in the Iraqi village of Hamdania and were sentenced to jail
terms ranging from 12 to 21 months. Hutchins, the squad leader
of the men from Kilo Company for the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, and
Pennington, Magincalda and Thomas each face murder, conspiracy, assault,
kidnapping, housebreaking and related offenses and each remains in the brig
at Camp Pendleton. External link: http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/12/13/news/top_stories/1_04_2312_12_06.txt |