An Army investigator has recommended that four soldiers accused of murder in
a raid in Iraq should face the death penalty if convicted, according to a report
obtained Saturday by The Associated Press.
Lt. Col. James P. Daniel Jr. concluded that the slayings were premeditated
and warranted the death sentence based on evidence he heard at an August
hearing. The case will now be forwarded to Army officials, who will decide
whether Daniel's recommendation should be followed.
The soldiers, all from the Fort Campbell, Ky.-based 101st Airborne Division's
187th Infantry Regiment, are accused of killing three Iraqi men taken from a
house May 9 on a marshy island outside Samarra, about 60 miles north of Baghdad.
Staff Sgt. Raymond L. Girouard, Spc. William B. Hunsaker, Pfc. Corey R.
Clagett and Spc. Juston R. Graber have claimed they were ordered to "kill all
military age males" during the raid on the island. According to statements from
some of the soldiers, they were told the target was an al-Qaida training camp.
Hunsaker told investigators that he and Clagett were attacked by the three
men, who were being handcuffed, and shot them in self-defense. Clagett said he
was hit in the face, and Hunsaker claimed he was stabbed during the attack.
Prosecutors argue the soldiers conspired to kill the men and then altered the
scene to fit their story. They contend Girouard stabbed Hunsaker as part of the
killing plot.
Clagett, Girouard and Hunsaker also are accused of threatening to kill
another soldier who witnessed the slayings. Girouard, the most senior soldier
charged, faces several additional charges, including sexual harassment and
carrying a personal weapon on duty.
Paul Bergrin, Clagett's civilian attorney, said he was surprised that Daniel
recommended the case be taken to trial at all.
"I'm extremely disappointed and disheartened," Bergrin said Saturday. "They
are being used as pawns in the war on terror. They followed the rules of
engagement. They were confronted with violence by a known al-Qaida training camp
member."
Other lawyers in the case, several of whom are deployed to Iraq, did not
immediately respond to e-mail requests for comment.
The soldiers are expected to be tried at Fort Campbell. They have been jailed
in Kuwait since their arrests this year.
The U.S. military has not executed a soldier since the 1960 hanging of a
soldier convicted rape and attempted murder.
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