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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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August 23rd, 2006 - Family of
Soldier Says He’s Shackled Around the Clock |
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Family of Soldier Accused of
Iraqi Murder Says He’s Shackled Around the Clock By Robin Murdoch WBIR.com August 23, 2006 The family of a Sweetwater
soldier accused of murdering Iraqi detainees is speaking out on their loved
one's behalf. Advertisement Staff Sergeant Raymond
Girouard is one of four soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division who face
various charges stemming from the crime. Girouard's family has spoken
to him several times since he's been charged. They say their conversations
revolve more around how he is doing than what he's accused of, but they are
behind him 100%. Those who know Girouard best
say he was made to wear his Army uniform. But now this soldier on his second
tour of duty in Iraq finds himself in a Kuwait jail instead of on the front
lines. "I couldn't tell you
how many people know Raymond and this is so unlike the Raymond they all
know," says Ronald Bentley, the incarcerated soldier's grandfather. Bentley raised Girouard and
his two sisters, Joy Oakes and Kelly Kamps, after their mother was killed in
a car accident when they were young. Girouard now faces serious
time for his alleged involvement in the execution of three Iraqi detainees
earlier this year. "We're shocked because
we know Ray and even as a little boy he was such a compassionate person for
other people and their feelings. It's very hard to think he is charged with
murder," says Oakes. According to his family,
Girouard and the other soldiers accused in the crimes are now handcuffed 24
hours a day. They contend that photos (seen at right) they received from a
source in Iraq support this claim. However, the U.S. Army
disputes the family's statement that Girouard is shackled at all times. In an
e-mail to WBIR, an Army representative writes: "Soldiers who enter
pre-trial confinement like these individuals are in restraints only when they
are moved. Otherwise, they are not in restraints, so the information (your
reporter) received is absolutely false." The photos depicting
Girouard in cuffs motivated his family to speak out. "This is what started
my campaign to support Raymond, when I got these pictures. I was kinda quiet,
the whole family was, but when I got the pictures of the shackles, it did
something to me," says Ronald Bentley. Bumper stickers supporting
Girouard are also being sold around Sweetwater. And while his loved ones
don't know exactly what happened on May 9, about 60 miles north of Baghdad,
they say their family will stick together. "We know Ray is
innocent. He says he's done it by the books and he's done it by the books.
Ray is military through and through," adds his sister. The four accused soldiers
should know next week whether there is enough evidence for the case to be
referred to a court martial. External link:
http://www.wbir.com/news/archive.aspx?storyid=37158 |