Legal Commentary

U.S. Army Medic Found Guilty of Murdering 4 Iraqis

By Jeralyn

Sgt Michael Leahy Jr, a 28 year old army medic, was found guilty of the murder of four Iraqis at a courts-martial trial in Germany today. He faces up to life in prison and a dishonorable discharge.

Leahy was one of a group of soldiers who took detainees away after it was decided there was not enough evidence to charge them. Blindfolded and gagged, the four were then shot and dumped in a canal.

Leahy admitted killing one of the Iraqis. His lawyer's argument:

His lawyers argued that the stress of being in a conflict zone for so long meant he was unable to reason properly. ...His lawyer, Frank Spinner, argued that Leahy went along with the killings because he was dazed from a lack of sleep.

"The tragedy resulted not so much by design but rather the working of fear, danger and madness attendant on many combat operations," Mr Spinner said in his closing arguments.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on February 20, 2009 (boomark / email).