U.S. soldier in Iraq gang rape gets 90 years
Source: Reuters
(Adds plea in Camp Pendleton case, other details) FORT CAMPBELL, Ky., Nov 16 (Reuters) - A U.S. soldier who pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the rape and murder of a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and the killing of her family was sentenced on Thursday to up to 90 years in prison. Specialist James Barker will be eligible for parole under a plea deal with prosecutors that spared him the death penalty. The sentence was also subject to review by higher military authorities. Barker, one of four U.S. soldiers charged in the March 12 rape and murder of Abeer Qassim al-Janabi and death of her family, pleaded guilty to rape and murder charges on Wednesday and agreed to testify against his former comrades. It was not immediately clear when Barker could apply for parole. Prosecutors declined to comment because three other soldiers and a former soldier were awaiting trial. In an unrelated Iraq abuse case another Marine, Lance Cpl. Tyler Jackson, was sentenced on Thursday to 21 months in prison for his guilty plea to assault in the shooting death of an Iraqi man near the town of Hamdania and was sentenced to 21 months in prison. Jackson, based at Camp Pendleton near San Diego, earlier this month became the third military defendant to plead guilty to charges stemming from the shooting death of 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad, a former Iraqi policeman, and will testify for the prosecution. The gang rape and slayings at Mahmudiya, Awad's death in Hamdania and the killing of 24 unarmed men, women and children in Haditha have sparked outrage and calls by officials in Iraq for a review of foreign troops' immunity from Iraqi prosecution. LIFE SENTENCE Barker, who was 23 when the rape and murder were committed, knew by his plea agreement that he faced what was in effect a life sentence, with the main question being whether it would be without the possibility of parole. He provided graphic testimony to military investigators about the incident, saying those who committed the crime had been drinking whiskey mixed with an energy drink and discussed in advance killing an Iraqi family. In the Hamdania case, the military judge who sentenced Jackson, 23, said he would have preferred to give the Marine a much harsher term but was limited by a pretrial agreement with prosecutors. Jackson testified before his sentencing that he thought Awad was a known insurgent who had planned several deadly bombings, including one that killed four Marines weeks earlier. He did not find out the squad had killed an innocent man for weeks, he said. "If I had known, I would have told the rest of the members of the squad I wouldn't do it," Jackson said. "I would have done whatever I could to stop" the killing. He is the third defendant to plead guilty to reduced charges in exchange for an agreement to testify against the other participants. Attorneys for the four remaining defendants say their clients are innocent and want to fight the charges.(Additional reporting by Marty Graham at Camp Pendleton and Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles)
| AlertNet news is provided by |  |
