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February 19th,
2008 - Court-Martial Opens for Killing of Unarmed Iraqi News article by the Associated
Press |
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Court-Martial Opens for Killing
of Unarmed Iraqi By Greg Small Associated Press February 19, 2008 Wheeler Army Airfield,
Hawaii - A soldier has testified at a court-martial for a fellow soldier
accused of killing an unarmed Iraqi that his colleague didn't know if he shot
the victim or not. Spc. Christopher Shore's
court-martial on charges he shot and killed an unarmed Iraqi is being held
this week at Hawaii's Wheeler Army Airfield. Shore is accused of third-degree
murder. The Hawaii-based soldier
admits he fired his weapon near the man but says he intentionally missed the
victim by shooting to the side. Shore says he was afraid of
outwardly disobeying an abusive platoon sergeant who ordered him to finish
off the victim after the sergeant had shot him several times himself. But Staff Sgt. Robert Radle
testified at the court-martial Tuesday that Shore told him he didn't know
whether he hit the man. © 2008 The Associated Press External link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/5553798.html Trial starts for soldier in
death of Iraqi Schofield specialist Christopher Shore could get a life term if he is
convicted By Gregg K. Kakesako Honolulu Star Bulletin February 19, 2008 A Schofield Barracks soldier
charged with killing an unarmed Iraq civilian faces a court-martial today and
the possibility of life imprisonment with the possibility of parole. Spc. Christopher Shore, 26,
will try to convince a jury of soldiers that he deliberately missed hitting
the Iraqi after he was ordered to shoot the man by his patrol leader, Sgt.
1st Class Trey Corrales, following a raid on June 23 at Al-Saheed near
Kirkuk. Corrales was charged with
murder, wrongfully ordering Shore to shoot the unarmed Iraqi and hindering
the Army investigation by planting an AK-47 next to the body. The civilian
was shot multiple times in the head and chest. If convicted, Corrales, of San
Antonio, faces the maximum punishment of life without parole. Corrales' court-martial will
be held April 22 in the same Wheeler Army Air Field courtroom. Shore, 26, was initially
charged with murder, but Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, commander of the 25th
Division, reduced the charge to manslaughter. The two are not the first
25th Division soldiers to be charged with killing Iraqi civilians. In August
2004, Pfc. Edward Richmond Jr. - assigned to Alpha Company, 1st Battalion,
27th Infantry - was charged along with other soldiers from the 3rd Brigade
Combat Team with killing an Iraqi civilian in their custody. Richmond, of Gonzales, La.,
was the only 25th Infantry Division soldier convicted in the shooting. He
said he was following the orders of his unit commander, Sgt. Jeffrey Waruch.
Richmond was sentenced to three years in prison. Army Col. Donna Wright will
preside over the two courts-martial. Army Capts. Laura O'Donnell and J.P.
Leary will prosecute both cases. Shore, of Winder, Ga., will
be represented by civilian attorney Michael Waddington and a military lawyer,
Maj. Javier Rivera. Shore and Corrales spent 15
months in Iraq as members of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd
Battalion, 35th Infantry, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. They returned to Schofield
in November. During his pretrial hearing
in October, Waddington used testimony of a forensic pathologist to bolster
Shore's defense that he never fired at the unarmed civilian. Shore testified then that
his platoon had been called out late at night on June 22 to search Iraqi
homes where insurgents were believed to be hiding. After detaining several
men, whose hands had tested positive for explosives, Shore said he left the
house. Outside in a courtyard, he saw one of the Iraqis lying on the ground
wounded, he said. Shore said he was ordered by
Corrales to "finish him." Although he fired his M-4
carbine several times, Shore contends, he never hit the wounded civilian, who
died while in custody several days later. Shore testified that he did not
want to disobey Corrales' order because he was afraid of what Corrales might
do. Shore said Corrales had been abusive toward his soldiers in the past. Waddington said Shore later
reported the incident to 25th Division leaders. External link: http://starbulletin.com/2008/02/19/news/story03.html |