US Soldier Who Killed 17 Afghans Charged with Murder

US Soldier Who Killed 17 Afghans Charged with Murder

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was charged on Friday with 17 counts of premeditated murder, a capital offense that could lead to death penalty in the massacre of Afghan civilians, the U.S. military said.

The 38-year-old soldier is accused of walking out of the U.S. military base with his 9mm pistol and M-4 rifle, which was outfitted with a grenade launcher, killing nine Afghan children and eight adults and burning some of the bodies, before dawn on March 11. It was the worst case of civilian killings by an American which severely stained U.S.-Afghanistan ties.

It is not clear yet as to what prompted the rampage, but the case has strengthen the debate on mental health care for the military troops, who have experienced record suicide rates and high incidences of post-traumatic stress during repeated deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Bales also was charged with six counts of attempted murder and six counts of assault in another case wherein six other Afghans – a man, a woman and four children – were wounded in Panjwai district of Kandahar province, the spiritual birthplace of the Taliban.

Bales was officially informed of the 29 charges just before noon at the U.S. military prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, where he is currently detained.

His attorney, John Henry Browne, said Friday he believes the government will have a hard time proving its case and that his client's mental state will be a crucial issue. Bales was on his fourth tour of duty, having served three tours in Iraq, where he suffered head and foot injuries.

The decision to charge him with premeditated murder suggests that prosecutors believe he consciously conceived the killings. A military legal official for U.S. forces in Afghanistan noted that premeditated murder is not something that has to have been contemplated for a long time.

The maximum punishment for a premeditated murder indictment is death, dishonorable discharge from the army, reduction to the lowest rank and total forfeiture of all pay benefits, whereas the mandatory minimum sentence is life imprisonment with the chance of parole.

Posted by James Fried on Sunday March 25 2012, 5:20 AM EST. Ref: CNN. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0