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| Iraq-Jordan | |
| Navy SEAL acquitted of abusing Iraqi prisoner who later died | |
| 2005-05-28 | |
| A Navy SEAL who was acquitted of beating an Iraqi prisoner and then lying about it says he wants to return to duty in the elite unit. Jurors deliberated about three hours Friday before finding Lt. Andrew K. Ledford not guilty of all charges. The 32-year-old SEAL had faced up to 11 years in military prison if he had been convicted of assault, dereliction of duty, conduct unbecoming an officer and making false statements. The detainee, Manadel al-Jamadi, later died in CIA custody. Ledford, who had stood at attention for the verdict's reading, burst into a huge smile and embraced his attorney upon hearing he was acquitted. He later brushed away tears and shook hands with the prosecutors. "I think that's what makes this country great is that there is a system in place and it works," he said outside court. Through his attorney, Ledford said he plans to continue serving as a SEAL. He has been selected for the rank of lieutenant commander, a promotion that was placed on hold pending the outcome of his court martial. The 1995 U.S. Naval Academy graduate served as a Marine officer before joining the Navy's elite Sea, Air, Land or SEAL teams. He now lives in Hawaii and co-pilots a mini-sub used to deliver commandos ashore and retrieve them on covert missions. The jury was comprised of six Navy officers, including one SEAL who served as foreman. All six work at SEAL headquarters in Coronado, outside San Diego, under the command of Rear Adm. Joseph Maguire, the top SEAL. A conviction would have required guilty votes from at least four of the six members. Navy prosecutors left the courtroom without commenting. "I hope that someone receives a message from this outcome," Ledford's civilian attorney, Frank Spinner, told reporters. "That we have valiant warriors, brave SEALs, who put their lives on the line and they're human." Prosecutors said that Ledford failed as a leader on a November 2003 mission after he and his men captured al-Jamadi, a suspect in the bombing of Red Cross offices in Baghdad that killed 12. During a brief stop at an Army base, members of Ledford's SEAL platoon testified that they punched, kicked and struck al-Jamadi with muzzles of their rifles. Instead of ordering his men to halt the beating, Ledford accepted a subordinate's offer to "give this turd a knock" and punched the bound prisoner in the arm, Navy prosecutor Lt. Chad Olcott said. No witnesses who appeared during the five-day court martial testified that they saw Ledford strike al-Jamadi. The only evidence of the punch came in Ledford's own sworn statement last year to Navy criminal investigators. On the witness stand Thursday, Ledford denied punching the detainee. Al-Jamadi died shortly after the SEALs turned him over to the CIA while he was being interrogated in Abu Ghraib prison. Prosecutors presented no evidence linking Ledford to the detainee's death.
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| Posted by:Steve White |
| #1 Screw the dead killer....props to the dude who had the clanging pair to make it through BUDS |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2005-05-28 16:56 |