A number of articles are circulating and the blogosphere is discussing the obligations of Major Hasan’s counsel to do anything and everything to avoid the death penalty as a sentence at his court-martial. Here is an interesting item, not that it’s going to be relevant to the Fort Hood case involving Major Hasan, but as an example of how closely IAC is looked at in a death penalty case.
Karen Franklin first notes that:
Here is a good site for information about Stolen Valor Act issues.
Web Site Aims to Uncover Fakers in Fatigues
I’ve posted before about different cases where a service-member or civilian have “invented” their military career. Two recent examples are here and here. Now there’s another. Military.com reports that a retired senior chief petty officer appears to have fabricated his presence in USS COLE when the ship was attacked.
In early November, retired Senior Chief Jeffrey Sparenberg was the guest of honor at military heritage day in Delaware.
Sparenberg spent 23 years in the Navy, including time on the destroyer Cole, and he was at Fort DuPont State Park that day to donate a flag that he said flew over the Cole shortly after it was attacked nine years ago.
Sane or insane, Major Hasan’s mental state before and during his alleged offenses will be raised in his court-martial. Death penalty cases are different so sayeth they U.S. Supreme Court. Everything must be raised that could possibly have some impact on either the finding of guilt to a capital charge or in sentencing. The Supreme Court decision in Porter v. McCollum makes it clear that failure to raise mental health issues, including PTSD, will likely lead to a finding of ineffective assistance of counsel. A distinction can be argued between Porter and Hasan — one was in combat, the other about to get into vicarious PTSD issues. But any competent attorney for Major Hasan has to consider the mental health issues as vital to the defense presentation.
Been gone for a family emergency so I won’t go too far back. But . . .
DoD reports that:
Seattleweekly.com reports:
Having now admitted to murder, Fort Lewis Spc. Ivette Davila today awaits word on whether she will face the death penalty for it.
Davila, 23, an Army chemical specialist, is charged with killing Staff Sgt. Timothy Miller and Sgt. Randi Miller in their Parkland home March 2, 2008, soaking their bodies in muriatic acid and kidnapping their 7-month-old daughter.
Stars & Stripes reports:
A prosecutor has argued that a Marine Corps officer facing demotion failed to fully disclose and investigate the killing of two dozen Iraqi men, women and children by Marines under his command.
But a defense attorney called the retired officer a highly qualified leader who took the fall amid political pressure fueled by inaccurate media reports of what was a chaotic firefight with insurgents and not a war crime.
I just commented on two incidents involving suspicious actions by soldiers; one at Fort Campbell and one near Fort Leonard Wood.
Army Times now reports:
A box of hollow-point bullets and an anonymous note threatening an incident like the one at Fort Hood, Texas, were discovered Thursday at Fort Benning, Ga., sparking a criminal investigation and greater police presence, a witness told Army Times.According to a witness at the scene, a box of 20 hollow-point shells and a handwritten note were found in the motor pool area between 1st Battalion and 2nd Battalion, 29th Infantry, under the 197th Infantry Training Brigade.“The note said ‘tell the commanding general to call off all charges or there will be a re-enactment of Fort Hood,’ ” the witness told Army Times. He spoke on condition he wouldn’t be identified.
Army Times reports that Major Hasan has had or is about to have a pretrial confinement hearing at Fort Hood. A hearing is required within certain time periods under R.C.M. 305. R.C.M. 305 is a regulation in the manual for courts-martial that implements due process for someone detained for a crime. The military does not have bail. The person is either detained or released into restriction to base or personal recognizance during the time of the court-martial. It is unlikely that Major Hasan will be released onto Fort Hood. The issue appears to be whether he is physically fit for confinement as certified by a medical doctor.
Army Times and AP report that an AWOL soldier wins stay of Canadian deportation.
Canada’s Federal Court says the country’s refugee board must reconsider the case of a lesbian who deserted the U.S. Army.
As CAAFLog has pointed out, it appears that Major Hasan will be tried by media.
Someone at the National Capital Consortium, Psychiatry Residency Program, Walter Reed Army Medical Center has released a letter to the Credentials Committee. No word on the WRAMC AR 15-6 into this unauthorized disclosure.
One of the common “defenses” raised at trial is that the accused is a "Good Soldier.” Assuming evidence of this, usually through character witnesses and documents, the military judge is required to instruct the members that a “Good Soldier” defense can if believed and warranted be sufficient to create reasonable doubt at court-martial.
Military.com reports:
Arizona sheriff’s deputies busted three men identifying themselves as Army Soldiers with almost 700 pounds of marijuana and $10,000 in cash during a two-day sweep for human smugglers.
Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog