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Old 12-19-2003, 04:43 AM
thedrifter thedrifter is offline
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December 18, 2003

Prisoner abuse described at Marines? hearing

By Seth Hettana
Associated Press


CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. ? Marine reservists running a detention facility in Iraq ordered prisoners of war to remain standing for hours until interrogators could question them, according to testimony at a military court hearing Wednesday.
Maj. William Vickers, who oversaw the detention facility in southern Iraq, is charged with dereliction of duty for failing to stop Marine guards from mistreating prisoners.

Seven other Marine reservists who worked at the facility near Nasiriyah also faced charges ranging from assault to negligent homicide.

An Iraqi detainee, Nagem Sadoon Hatab, a 52-year-old Baath Party official, died June 6 at the detention facility when a Marine reservist grabbed him by the neck and unintentionally snapped a bone in his throat. Vickers, who oversaw the facility in April and May, had left the camp when Hatab was killed.

The facility, a former Iraqi military compound that the Marines call Camp Whitehorse, was a small, makeshift jail for possible enemy prisoners rounded up during raids.

According to testimony, prisoners were strip-searched upon arrival and then placed in a holding cell, their hands in plastic handcuffs and their heads covered by sandbags.

Marines sometimes slapped or forcibly moved prisoners who failed to comply with orders, said Staff Sgt. Fredy Tellocastillo, a former guard at the camp who testified under grant of immunity.

?We let them know we mean business. This is our camp. You?re our prisoner,? Tellocastillo said.

On the wall of the jail, Marines spray painted the words ?225 Terror Dome,? a reference to the unit that ran the camp, the 2nd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment.

The prisoners were held at Whitehorse until they could be interrogated by a Marine ?human exploitation team,? which would determine whether the detainees should be released or transferred elsewhere.

While they waited for the team to arrive, guards put prisoners through what they called ?the 50-10? ? ordering them to stand for 50 minutes, and sit for 10 ? for up to 10 hours at a time, Tellocastillo said.

?This is a case, a situation about what is right and what is wrong when it comes to dealing with civilian detainees and prisoners of war when the United States is operating in a combat zone,? Capt. Jamie McCall, a military prosecutor, said at an Article 32 hearing at Camp Pendleton to determine whether Vickers will be court-martialed.

Vickers? defense attorney said responsibility for running Camp Whitehorse was ?dumped? on the 36-year-old major whose training was in weapons, not corrections. The Marines offered little training, no foreign-language skills, and minimal guidance on how to run the jail, said Jane Siegel, a retired Marine colonel who is serving as a civilian defense attorney.

?Major Vickers did the best job he could under the circumstances,? Siegel said.

Three of the Marine reservists already have been ordered to face special courts-martial for alleged abuse of detainees at the camp: Sgt. Albert Rodriguez-Martinez, who is accused of making false official statements and two counts of assault; Lance Cpl. Andrew Rodney, who is accused of one count of assault; and Lance Cpl. Konstantin Mikholap, who is accused of making false official statements and two counts of assault.

Lance Cpl. Christian Hernandez and his superior, Maj. Clark Paulus, are charged with negligent homicide in Hatab?s death. Article 32 proceedings also are planned for Sgt. Gary Pittman for alleged dereliction of duty and five counts of assault, and Lance Cpl. William Roy for alleged dereliction of duty, cruelty and maltreatment and five counts of assault.

Hearings for the four Marines are scheduled for January.

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/sto...925-2492485.php


Sempers,

Roger
__________________
IN LOVING MEMORY OF MY HUSBAND
SSgt. Roger A.
One Proud Marine
1961-1977
68/69
Once A Marine............Always A Marine.............

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  #2  
Old 12-19-2003, 04:43 AM
thedrifter thedrifter is offline
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Case opens in treatment of Iraqis




Marine major first to face charges arising from actions on prisoners

By Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

December 18, 2003

CAMP PENDLETON ? The first of eight cases against Marines charged with abusing ? and in one case killing ? Iraqi prisoners went to court here yesterday.

Maj. William Vickers is charged with failing to obey an order or regulation for allegedly allowing his men to mistreat prisoners while he was in charge of a small detention facility outside Nasiriyah, about 180 miles southeast of Baghdad.

The charges against the eight range from dereliction of duty to negligent homicide.

"This is a case, a situation about what is right and what is wrong when it comes to dealing with civilian detainees and prisoners of war when the United States is operating in a combat zone," Capt. Jamie McCall, a prosecutor in the case, said in opening statements.

Jane Siegel, Vickers' civilian defense attorney, said her client did the best he could after being stuck in a job that he was wasn't trained for and one that one else wanted.

"Vickers was just the guy who came up and got tagged for it," said Siegel, a retired Marine colonel in legal services. "No one could get any information on how to run the detention facility . . . Like any good Marine, he was trying to get the job done."

The case against Vickers, 36, is that he knew his guards were employing the "50/10 technique," in which prisoners were forced to stand for 50 minutes of every hour for 10 or more straight hours in heat sometimes topping 120 degrees.

For about six weeks starting in mid-April 2003, Vickers was in charge of the detention facility.

Former guards testified yesterday that new prisoners were handcuffed and a sandbag placed over their heads. Then they were forced to stand for hours until interrogators from the "Human Exploitation Team" arrived to question them.

After questioning, the prisoners were usually not treated like that again, they testified.

"The question is, does prolonged standing and sleep deprivation constitute a low-grade torture?" asked Maj. Mark K. Jamison, a legal officer from Camp Pendleton. "If so, usually the person in charge is responsible."

Two former guards who testified doubted that the technique used to make prisoners more likely to talk was inhumane.

"All we asked them to do was stand for a period of time," said Cpl. Otis Antoine, who was a guard for Vickers. U.S. "soldiers over there got tortured and killed, but they were just asked to stand."

The charges against Vickers and seven others arose after the death of Nagem Sadoon Hatab, a ranking Baath Party official, on June 6 at Camp Whilehorse.

An autopsy showed that Hatab, 52, died essentially from having his throat crushed.

Vickers was not in charge of the detention facility when Hatab died, but was charged, a Marine spokesman said, as a result of allegations by former guards about activities that occurred later.

He is the first of the eight Marines belonging to the 2nd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, a reserve unit based in New England, to have his case move forward in court. The Marines are being kept on active duty at Camp Pendleton while their cases are being handled.

Vickers' military preliminary hearing is expected to last through Friday, after which an investigative officer will recommend to 1st Marine Division commander Maj. Gen. James Mattis whether Vickers should be tried by the military.

Three of the Marine reservists already have been ordered to face special courts-martial for alleged abuse of detainees at the camp; however, they have not yet gone to court.

Hearings for the other four Marines are scheduled for January.

The current hearing is being presided over by Col. William Gallo.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rick Rogers: (760) 476-8212; rick.rogers@uniontrib.com


http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/..._2m18major.html


Sempers,

Roger
__________________
IN LOVING MEMORY OF MY HUSBAND
SSgt. Roger A.
One Proud Marine
1961-1977
68/69
Once A Marine............Always A Marine.............

http://www.geocities.com/thedrifter001/
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