American Soldier Gets 90 Years In The Joint

[WateringHole]

-- A soldier was sentenced Thursday to 90 years in prison with the possibility of parole for conspiring to rape a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and kill her and her family.

Spc. James P. Barker, one of four Fort Campbell soldiers accused in the March 12 rape and killings, pleaded guilty Wednesday and agreed to testify against the others to avoid the death penalty.

Under the plea agreement, Barker got a life sentence but will not serve more than 90 years in prison, Anderson said. He will be eligible for parole in 20 years.

Barker, 23, showed no reaction when the sentence was read. Afterward, he smoked a cigarette outside as a bailiff watched over him. He grinned but said nothing as reporters passed by.

Barker wept during his closing statement, accepted responsibility for the rape and killings and said violence he encountered left him embittered toward Iraqis.

"I want the people of Iraq to know that I did not go there to do the terrible things that I did," Barker said, his voice quivering. "I do not ask anyone to forgive me today."

The killings in Mahmoudiya, a village about 20 miles south of Baghdad, were among the worst in a series of alleged attacks on civilians and other abuses by military personnel in Iraq.

"To live there, to survive there, I became angry and mean. The mean part of me made me strong on patrols. It made me brave in fire fights," Barker said. "I loved my friends, my fellow soldiers and my leaders, but I began to hate everyone else in Iraq."

Some of Barker's fellow soldiers testified on his behalf, describing weeks with little support and sleep while manning distant checkpoints.

"The bottom line is they were not giving the soldiers the tools, were not giving the soldiers the combat stress treatment, were not giving them enough troops on the ground to fulfill their mission," defense attorney David Sheldon said after the sentencing.

Capt. William Fischbach, the lead prosecutor, told the court that such conditions were no excuse for Barker, who led the group to the family's house, and that no one deserved such unspeakable horrors.

"This burned-out corpse that used to be a 14-year-old girl never fired bullets or lobbed mortars," Fischbach said as he held pictures of the crime scene.

The defendants are accused of burning the girl's body to conceal the crime.

Sgt. Paul E. Cortez, 24, has deferred entering a plea, and Pfc. Jesse V. Spielman, 22, will be arraigned in December. Both are members of the 101st Airborne Division along with Barker and could face the death penalty if convicted.

Pfc. Bryan L. Howard, 19, also deferred entering a plea at his arraignment in October. He does not face the death penalty.

Steven Green, 21, pleaded not guilty last week to civilian charges including murder and sexual assault. The former private was discharged for a "personality disorder" before the allegations became known, and prosecutors have yet to say whether they will pursue the death penalty against him.

In earlier testimony, Barker described in detail how he raped Abeer Qassim al-Janabi with Cortez and Green before Green killed the girl, her younger sister and parents.

"Cortez pushed her to the ground. I went towards the top of her and kind of held her hands down while Cortez proceeded to lift her dress up," he said. "Around that time I heard shots coming from a room next door."

Barker did not name Spielman and Howard as participants in the rape and murders but said Spielman went along to the house knowing what the others intended to do. Prosecutors said Howard had been left behind at a checkpoint.


Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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[Robert Ryan]

Such tradgey happens in the midst of war. I remember becoing numb and hating or liking Vietnamese people, I just felt nothing about them. I coudl care less about them then. This happens to soldiers who must learn to survive. And then take 20 some years to get past it, and become a feeling person again.

[DMZ-LT]

This is not a tragedy or just something that happens in war. This was the premeditated rape of a minor and the murder of an entire family. This discredits all our Armed Forces I only wish LT. Cally was in the next cell

[SuperScout]

"Under the plea agreement, Barker got a life sentence but will not serve more than 90 years in prison, Anderson said. He will be eligible for parole in 20 years."

So this is what the Associated Press reports? Let's see if I can do the math: a 20+/- soldier gets a 90 year prison term, and it ain't 'life'? And I don't remember many if any military sentences with the 'eligible for parole in 20 years' stipulation.

Total agreement with what LT said....

[Robert Ryan]

What I meant was it is a tragedy that this had to happen. The murder of and raping is not right. I was reading some of the testimony from his comrades who have come to feel nothing for the Iraqi people, much like we did for the Vietanamese. I wouldn't just murder a Vietnamese becasue I had become numb, I just wouldn't fell anyting when it did.

[WateringHole]

I don't know if the procedures are the same today as it was during Eisenhower days where the Allied Commander had the final word in rape and murder court marshalls. Eisenhower would have sentence all of them to the firing squad.
I believe it would be safe to say Eisenhower gave the ax to 95 Soldiers during WWII. What I was able to find was a piece about Pvt Slovik which read "Slovik was executed Jan 31, 1945 and buried along with 94 other American Soldiers in a secret cemetery in France set aside for those executed for rape and murder".

[Packo]

Everybody,

I just finished a book that should be manditory reading for all....including Veterans.

"Flyboys" by James Bradley, same author of Flags of our Fathers. It will sure put all of this, including Abu Grabe in perspective. It's tough to read because of what it says of all sides in a war. Give it a read.

Pack