Thursday, November 17, 2005
New charges are based on statements of soldiers convicted of the crimes.
FORT RILEY, Kan. (AP) -- A young infantry officer was too concerned about the rules of engagement in Iraq to make the mistake of telling his men to kill innocent civilians, soldiers testified Wednesday.
The testimony came during a military hearing to determine whether 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson should face a general court martial for the deaths of two Iraqis at the hands of his soldiers in August 2004. Prosecutors allege he gave his soldiers permission to kill the civilians.
"I don't think anyone in their right mind would tell anyone to do that," said Sgt. Jacob Smith, who served with Anderson's platoon in the 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry.
Anderson, 26, is from Twinsburg, Ohio, a Cleveland suburb.
Peter Lorenz of Hudson, his uncle, said Anderson was a linebacker for Twinsburg High School and played football for YSU before graduating in 2001.
Anderson led a platoon that deployed to Iraq in June 2004. The murder charges are based on the statements of two soldiers convicted of the crimes who want to shorten their time behind bars.
Those men were expected to testify Wednesday night and this morning.
The cases in which he's charged happened while his men were battling followers of a radical Shiite cleric near Sadr City.
Prosecutors dropped charges against Anderson in January, saying there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute him. But they left the investigation open and the case was transferred back to Fort Riley for further review. New charges were filed in October.
Congressmen on his side
Anderson's congressman, Republican Steven LaTourette, and Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, denounced the new charges last month and asked colleagues to do likewise. LaTourette, a member of the House Committee on Government Reform, asked other colleagues to join them.
Prosecutor Capt. Chuck Neill said Anderson authorized an unlawful use of force in Iraq and was guilty of failing to enforce military standards of conduct within his platoon.
Anderson's attorney, Neal Puckett, said Anderson and his platoon sergeant conducted the initial investigations, and Army investigators pursued charges only after soldiers became concerned about recent combat actions.