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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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January 11th,
2008 - Schofield Soldier Chooses Jury of Enlisted Military |
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Schofield Soldier
Chooses Jury of Enlisted Military By Gregg K. Kakesako Honolulu Star Bulletin January 11, 2008 The 25-year-old Schofield
Barracks soldier charged with killing an unarmed Iraqi civilian last summer
will face a jury of enlisted soldiers at a court-martial Feb. 19. Spc. Christopher Shore of
Winder, Ga., has decided that his court-martial, which will be held at a
Wheeler Army Airfield courthouse, will be before a panel of at least five
enlisted soldiers rather than a judge alone. If convicted, Shore faces a
maximum sentence of life without parole in prison. The judge in the
court-martial will be Col. Donna Wright. Shore will be represented by
civilian attorney Michael Waddington, and a military lawyer, Maj. Javier
Rivera, who will be brought back from Iraq for the court-martial. Prosecuting Shore will be
Capt. Laura O'Donnell, who presented the case at an Article 32 hearing three
months ago. Initially, Shore, a scout
with 25th Infantry Division's 3rd Brigade Combat Team, was charged with
premeditated murder along with his platoon leader and fellow scout, Sgt. 1st
Class Trey Corrales. An investigating officer
recommended in November that the premeditated-murder charge be dropped and
that the Georgia native be charged only with aggravated assault. However, Maj. Gen. Benjamin
Mixon, commander of the 25th Infantry Division, disagreed and referred
Shore's case to a court-martial, reducing the charge to manslaughter. Corrales, 36, whose
court-martial date has not been set, is charged with premeditated murder, but
Mixon decided that he will not face the death penalty if convicted. In October, at an Article 32
hearing, the military's equivalent to a preliminary hearing, Shore testified
that the Iraqi civilian had been shot and was bleeding and on the ground when
Corrales ordered Shore to "finish him." Shore said he fired his
rifle but intentionally missed. The following day, Shore reported the
incident. Corrales faces two
additional charges based on Shore's testimony - asking Shore to kill the
detainee and planting an AK-47 rifle next to his body. Lt. Col. Raul Gonzalez, who
presided over Shore's Article 32 hearing, said that there was
"overwhelming evidence" that only Corrales shot and hit the Iraqi
civilian several times with his M-4 rifle. Army prosecutors allege the
two soldiers killed the unarmed civilian on June 23. They came upon him when
their platoon raided a house near Kirkuk in northern Iraq in search of men
they believed were planting roadside bombs. External link: http://starbulletin.com/2008/01/11/news/story07.html |