I'm not Matt Taibbi

evan's opinion and thankyous

2009-05-22T00:19:00.006-05:00

This isn't the post you're looking for. If you want to see the final blog about closing statements and the verdict scroll down a bit or please click here.

Let's see here(I'm gonna talk like an 18 year old now, get over it)....This has been one of the most incredible, astounding, and enlightening experiences of my life. That's really all I want to say about that.

People emailed asking for my own opinions:

This case was a tragedy snowball which began rolling the very day Steven Green was born, even before. Did Green screw up? Hell yeah. Did Barker, Cortez, and Spielman? Of course. Did the Army? ahhh, therein lies the ruse. Did Green's parents do their job? The plot thickens!

Let's be clear here: I'm not taking sides of this case. What happened, happened, and the jury decided what the...or no they didn't actually! Either way, now Green is imprisoned for life. But, if there's one thing I am going to opine that I have determined in reading/studying/noting/writing about all of this, it's that there are FAR. TOO. MANY. PLACES. where this snowball of i-don't-know-what, could have been stopped in it's tracks. Roxanne should have been a better mother. Roxanne and John(and possibly Daniel) should have been better parents. Doug could've been a little less of a bully to his lil' bro. His various highschools could've worked a little bit harder at giving a needy student the extra push he needed. Hell, Steve could've stuck to his Riddlin' sched and made better grades. Alright enough with the family. Onward to the Army. Green tried to enlist in the Army in several counties, and was denied due to his alcohol/pot record. Good job, those recruiters. Then Green and Daniel Carr made a hop/skip/jump over to New Mexico or somewhere, where that one recruiter decided to say to himself, "okay, hell, if this kid can pass high school in 6 months, I'll waive his drinkin' and smokin'." And look what happened. Look what became of his one exception. I hope he's reading this out there somewhere and you feel just great!

Alright. Green goes to Iraq. We've heard this story before and I'm not going to even get into how many soldiers or sergeants or various other sources have emailed me to weigh in on the subject and whether what was being said in court was the truth or not. I'm going to keep it simple. Dear Army, wake the **** up! Our army is miserly thieving soldiers of their benefits, is obviously faking innocence to something regarding Steven Green's case, and is APPARENTLY STILL DOING WHATEVER THAT MIGHT BE. We know Green and his buds messed up. But come ON! DAMN! Take responsibility for what you've done! You didn't totally screw up, Green's guilty for about a 1/3 of it, as are you, as are ...something with how that man grew up.

People were never on their toes around Steven Green. Things that should've set off alarms...didn't. People didn't tattle tail(oops). People didn't report. People didn't get him help(oops). People didn't pay him attention(oops). It's about the little things, people, the little things. They don't mean much NOW but in the long run, they add up. There might be some kind of trend there, with some of those LITTLE factors.

Next topic: lawyers. All the lawyers did an awesome job. I've only done mock trial for four years, so this is kind of a step up for me and I don't know everything. But in my opinion all of them were given an extremely shitty case and they made one hell of a case out of it for their respective sides. Again, not taking sides, but particularly the defense. Mountains out of molehills. The prosecution had their case from day 1. More professionalism than I ever hope to have to be around for this amount of time ever again!

As for the jury, I don't know. During guilt phase they could've agreed to give him guilty on all but not kill him when sentencing rolled around. A single juror could've walked in yesterday(it's 1:11AM, so 2 days ago now) and immediately said "you can deliberate all ya want, I'm not killin 'im." All in all, I think if you gave any jury this case as it was presented, you'd have gotten the exact same verdict. So, in my ever so humble opinion, I think they gave him guilty because, he was. But they also collectively ate a little crow and said "aight, it wasn't only Green," hence the inability to decide the verdict.

Alright, enough of my rambling bull.

I've got a few thank yous and a few statements of my own to make:
I'd like to thank....the Academy for givi...no not really.
There are a few people who need to be greatly thanked for making this/allowing this to happen, and otherwise assisting in the process.

-More than anything, the ridiculously awesome principal of my high school, Mrs. Debbie DeWeese who realized the chance opportunity I had in doing this and bent over backwards to make it happen for me
-Judge Thomas Russell and Vanessa Armstrong for actually allowing a highschooler to be set loose in a Federal trial-- what where you thinking?!
-My teachers for being so much more accommodating and understanding when they didn't have to be
-Various ...people, from both sides and the middle, who gave me...pictures and various other assorted ...things, when you didn't have to. You know who you are.
-Lawyers, right! uhhh, Darren Wolff for the advice, evidence, comedy, and the "what's that little bastard up to this time?" stare. Patty B for the confidence. Scott Dusseldorf for being a Mac dude. Marisa Ford for being the only prosecutor who was willing to talk to me(Lesousky/Skaret, sorry dudes)
-Of course, the parentals. My mom made me sandwiches and ironed my clothes everyday. Dad yelled at me to wake up. If that isn't love, I don't know what is!
-Brett Barrouquere(I spelt that shit RIGHT!) and Jim Frederick for their all-seeing all-knowing incredible intelligence, wisdom, and advice.
-Gail Mellor and Matthew Palevsky for getting me on THE HUFFINGTON POST HOLY SHIT. I can't thank you enough and wouldn't know how if I tried, so I'm not going to.
-Dave Alsup from CNN...for nothing other than answering my questions, not getting mad at the spilt milk, and being a total badass.

My email address is eviio at comcast dot net(you can put the @ and the . in their places). I'm examining my options of continuing my writing. This trial had a huge(not as big as it should've been) following. I don't mind writing, but no offense to anyone in particular, I don't think I could handle sticking to trials/iraq/war crimes/death penalty cases. I have ADD. I've had people tell me to make this blog into a book, if for nothing else to say I've written one. I'm looking into that.

Send me your ideas for the future/my future/ the future of my blog/writing. Send me pictures of your dog. I don't care. I thank all of you for your support and I wish ya well in your life and endeavours. This trial is more or less over. I might come back to post for appeals or something, who knows. But by then, you'll have forgotten about http://trialcoverage.blogspot.com. I don't blame you, it's hard not to forget things in todays information-ASAP world. I might also post a link to my new blog, if a new blog is born. We'll see.

It's been real-- Evan Bright

A Sentence and A life

2009-05-21T20:55:00.005-05:00

Day 17

Both sides presented excellent closing statements…some would call each of them “perfection.” Given the circumstances, I would. Perhaps it was the closing statements, so wrought with history and emotion and pain, which caused the jury to hang.

A short review

In closing statements, Brian Skaret presented a contrasting tale of the now deceased family versus the defense case. “Imagine little Hadeel’s body when it snapped as the bullet flew through her head… and Dr. Gur says Green had frontal lobe damage?” Skaret then presented a previously entered picture of Qassim Al-Janabi’s crime scene, “Well, here’s Qassim’s frontal lobe.” He talked about the rest of the family, especially Abeer, “Abeer had dreams of escaping her circumstances, of joining the city life, of meeting a man, but Steven Green prevented that…but they say that Green’s parents spent a lot of time at bars.” He also stated that if Casica and Nelson, Green’s now deceased superior officers while in Iraq, knew of their use in this case, “they would roll over in their graves!” He spoke of the defense building a smoke screen around the case, “but it is the smoke from the fire of Abeer’s burning body.”

“How many people will they try to blame? This isn’t about childhood, background information, combat stress…this is about heinous acts. The search for a scapegoat ends today.” In contrast to the defense’s statements and questioning regarding Barker and Cortez’ parole option, he made sure to tell the jury “there is no evidence that they’ll make parole, this is pure speculation. The letter will say ‘these men cooperated,’ yes, but we can also speculate that they’ll die in prison in 90 or 100 years.”

To no surprise, Skaret’s ended emotionally and valiantly, “Today is the day when you can stand up, and say no…no, no, NO! Our soldiers do not do this. He (points to Green) held that family’s life in his hands and crushed it, and in doing so he signed his own name to this death sentence. We ask that you finish what he started.”

A shorter review

Scott Wendelsdorf did his absolute best in pulling on the emotional strings of jurors. “There has been enough horror to last each of us, a lifetime,” he began. “The prosecution acts like we don’t care about Abeer.” Once again he spoke of the horrific nature of the crimes. “They(points to prosecution) act like life in prison is a slap on the wrist. No…a slap on the wrist is what Cortez and Barker got.” Echoing Pat Bouldin’s opening, Wendelsdorf reminded the jury, “As you know we never disputed Steven’s role in these crimes.” He talked about justice and what plays a role in it, stating that “you know, a big component of justice is fairness.” He talked about rape being Barker’s idea, and of Green confessing to Col. Marrs four separate times about his homicidal ideations. He talked about Marrs’ psychiatric reports and dissertations, in one of which she stated that ‘Combat can make the best soldiers commit the worst of crimes.’ Wendelsdorf ramped up in rhetorically questioning, “Where was Fenlason? Where was Goodwin?! There WERE no hard stripes at TCP2!” He talked about the “combat incapable” status that Marrs gave the platoon. “We’re not diverting responsibility,” he told the court. He implied that the Army knew that soldiers like Green were prime candidates for suicide and homicide. “This war changed them, it broke them, and it cut them, and led to this 15 minutes of madness.” He brought up a quote stating that, “Man’s law is most like God’s law when mercy seizes justice,” after which he vigorously ended his opening. “NO! America does not kill its broken heroes! Spare this boy! SPARE HIM!”

The verdict

The jury was given their instructions and the deliberations began. They deliberated for three and a half hours yesterday before adjourning. Throughout yesterday and today, there was much speculation regarding the possible outcome. Some thought out loud, “it can’t be good if [the jury is] taking this long.” Others speculated about a single juror holding out on the death penalty, and one unidentified person jokingly commented, “Hell for all we know they could be in there sleeping or playing poker.” Some people expressed frustration upon hearing that the jury had ordered lunch for tomorrow(Friday) as well as requesting extra work release forms. Various parts of the media could be seen camped out around the courthouse, and others were seen napping(err, heard snoring) in the media room(see picture below).

At 3:51PM a U.S. Marshall notified the court that the jury had reached a verdict. The gabble sirens were sounded and everyone came running.

The jury deliberated for a total of ten hours and twenty minutes. While waiting for the jury, Jim Lesousky(P) was seen, hands clasped, as if in prayer. Scott Wendelsdorf(D) was pacing around the defense table, anxious and apprehensive. His hands were shaking as he took his seat. Green, appearing in the same maroon sweater vest as before, appeared surprisingly calm, his breathing steady; the exact same calm-cool-collected look could also be seen on Green’s father John and uncle David, present in court. Pat Bouldin(D) twiddled his thumbs with his head down, knowing that this was the moment they’d spent the past two and a half years preparing for.
The jury entered, looking quite stern. Two juror’s lips were near quivering. The members of the defense team looked down, while the prosecution eyed the flock of jurors for the last time. After reviewing the verdict forms, Judge Russell announced that the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict, giving Green life in prison without possibility of parole.

Relief

A collective sigh of relief went up from the defense side. Wendelsdorf leaned back in his chair and eyed the sky, thankful. Steven Green’s brother Doug slouched in his court-pew, murmuring “thank you,” his hands shaking with relief. John Green, David Green, Doug Green, and an assistant from the defense team shared hugs all around. The three defense lawyers pounced on their phones, presumably informing wives and witnesses of the [lack of a] verdict. The prosecution appeared content. After the jury exited, Russell thanked everyone for his or her cooperation and assistance.

Doug, Green’s brother, said that “Given the choices, this was the only appropriate verdict,” later adding that he has “mixed emotions about the verdict, but at least he’ll have some semblance of life. We’re grateful.” Green’s father merely stated that it was “the best of two bad choices.” The defense team issued statements. They are as follows:

"We are obviously pleased with the penalty phase verdict given the two choices available to the jury.  However, there won’t be any celebrating tonight by the defense team.  Mr. Green will spend the rest of his life in jail and the events of March 12 2006 have forever changed the lives of many.  It is a tragic case on so many levels.  At the end of the day, we truly hope the US military will take a hard look at the resources they provide our service members dealing with combat stress issues.  If they do not, we are certain a tragedy like this will occur again in the future."
- The Defense team

Darren Wolff also issued a separate statement, being that he does not work for the government:

"Steven Green did not want to try this case.  He offered to plead guilty on two separate occasions in exchange for his life.  Those pleas were rejected by the Department of Justice.  That is when it became obvious that this case was not about fairness or equity, it was about appeasing the overseas communities who have been calling for Mr. Green’s execution.  We are pleased the jury did not bow to those politically motivated pressures."
- Darren Wolff, Individually

For the prosecution, Marisa Ford gave the age-old response you might expect:

"This trial represents some of the most important principles of our Constitution and our democracy in action. The decision of how just would be best served was left to the people. We have the utmost respect for their decision and we very much appreciate the attention the jury gave to the evidence in this case."

Later, Darren Wolff and Pat Bouldin told the editor of this blog that they feel they “have a good chance with appeals…this is a law that has not been tested yet…but it will be.” Wolff stated that “This as a tragedy for the Al-Janabi family, this was a tragedy for the soldiers, this was a tragedy for Green and his family.” Like the witnesses he questioned, he stated that, “yes,” he “will maintain contact with Steven while in prison.”

End.

I will be posting a "thank you note," if you will, later tonight.

LIFE

2009-05-21T16:42:00.002-05:00

The jury was unable to reach a verdict in USA v Green.
Therefore, Federal District Judge Thomas B. Russell will impose a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, when Green is formally sentenced on September 4th at 11:30AM.

Check back later tonight for the writeup on both closings and the verdict. Lots to come.

Deliberation's Continue

2009-05-21T10:25:00.004-05:00

Day 17

Ahem. For those of you wondering where yesterday's blog is, or perhaps wondering if the judge had kidnapped and sequestered me... I haven't.

The jury began deliberations yesterday after hearing closing statements from Brian Skaret(P) and Scott Wendelsdorf(D). Their deliberations continue as I write this(10:28AM Thursday). Details on closing statements will be found in the post-verdict writeup. Which will hopefully be today.

Until that time, here's this from CNN's Deborah Feyerick:

Calm Before The Storm

2009-05-19T20:35:00.002-05:00

If I tried to tell you that my "young" mind wasn't beginning to show signs of wear from doing this for ...nearly three weeks now, I'd be lying. Regardless, if you have any ideas about what I should do with this blog or what should become of it after the trial is over, please comment or email me.

Day 15

The defense rested today. While some were surprised that the jury would not get to hear testimony from any of Green's direct family, while others expected it.

For the prosecution, Jim Lesousky called a single rebuttal witness, as previously predicted. Dr. Helen Mayberg, a clinical neurologist at Emory University, was called; Dr. Ruben Gur was also listening via muted phone so as to hear what her response to his testimony would be.

Mayberg was called to respond to the testimony of Gur. She told the court of her medical degree from USC and of her certification in neurology. Her testimony did not last nearly as long as Gurs. She told the jury that "testing one person deemed possibly mentally disabled...against a control group of forty-one 'healthy' people, would not always produce accurate results." She told the court that she did not note the same variations within Green's MRI that Dr. Gur previously testified to the jury. She also testified that in Gur's study of the forty one "healthy" subjects, they were tested using MRI's of a 1.5 tesla strenth, as well as two other measurements/settings that were to equal or be set to "one;" she told the jury when Gur reviewed Green's MRI, he failed to notice that his MRI was given at a 3.0 tesla strength, and that the two other aformentioned settings were also different, meaning that Green's MRI would not have matched the control group results regardless. For the most part, the defense has been excellent, but if they've ever suffered a setback, this would be it.

For the defense, Scott Wendelsdorf crossed Dr. Mayberg on her witness history and her pay grade. She admitted that in her "twenty plus" years of testimony, she had never testified for the defense, only prosecution. She also admitted that while amount of pay doesn't affect her testimony, she was getting paid $500 per hour of testimony today.

Just after the judge stipulated the jury on a few menial matters, court adjourned at 10:50AM. Prosecution and Defense needed time to prepare both closing statements and to agree on jury instructions.

Closing statements start at 9AM sharp tomorrow, Wednesday, May 20th. After completion, the judge will instruct the jury and the waiting game will begin. Personally, I'm predicting that we'll have a verdict by this time(9:05PM CST) tomorrow. I, Evan Bright, am also predicting a sentence of life in prison, one way or another.

Final Furlong

2009-05-18T11:25:00.003-05:00

Day 14

The defense has almost completed its case for the jury. Noah Galloway was called to the stand first today. Patrick Bouldin questioned him about his level of confidence and his reasons for that confidence surrounding his February 2003 campaign in Iraq. "I was very confident, because of the excellent leadership. I told my wife to not worry about me because I wasn't worried about myself, I was in good hands." In contrast, regarding his second tour of duty in Iraq, he wasn't nearly as confident, due to the lack of training, and communication..."From the position of Company Commander, that was Captain Goodwin, all the way up past Colonel Kunk, I had my doubts," he told the jury.

The second witness to take the stand today was Deacon Dan Houck. Houck is a Deacon with the Archdiocese of Louisville. He is 82 years old, having served in WWII('44-'46) as a scout, Korea(3 years) as a 2nd Lieutenant with an 89th Tank Battallion, and Vietnam('69-'70) as a Lieutenant Colonel. He has served 16 years as a chaplain to the Kentucky State Reformatory. He testified that Steven Green requested to begin discussions with someone about joining the Catholic Church. Houck accepted the offer, thinking he could help with his past military experience. He testified that he had met with a very sincere Green around 40 times, expressing interest in the history of the Church. "Steven was very well read, in my talks with him. He did his homework. He was sincere," Houck told jurors. He told the court that as Green stands trial today, he is a baptized Catholic.

The final witness to testify today was Patricia Ruth, Steven's aunt, and sister to John Green, Steven's dad. Her daughter is Suzi Woolsey, who testified last Thursday. She spoke of Roxanne being a flamboyant and outgoing person who "lived in her own world." She contrasted in that she herself was "strict" on her children, whereas Roxanne was "the opposite" with hers. "She wanted her children to be individuals and live an unstructured life," she told the jury. She said that as a child, Steven was "always the kid who wanted to know 'why?,' and he was also very hyper active. He was like having a squirrel loose in the house." When Pat Bouldin asked if she still loved Green, she had to retrieve tissues for her tears before answering, "I'm like a second mother to him, he's my Stevie...(pauses)...you can't just...stop loving someone, that you've always loved." She paused and thought for a moment before going on, "I don't know, I don't know how we got to spot...I don't know, we did not send a rapist and a murderer to Iraq."

Perhaps the biggest point in her testimony, Bouldin asked her why Roxanne, Steven's mother, couldn't be here in Paducah to testify. "I'm not sure, but from what I've heard, to the best of my knowledge, she had to move and had plans to have a going away party so she couldn't attend?" In contrast, Bouldin noted that John Green and David Green, Green's Dad and Uncle, were present in the gallery. After she finished testimony and after the mid-morning break, a paralegal from the defense team would approach Ruth to tell her that "Steve wanted me to tell you that he wishes he could come over here and hug you." She tearfully wished she could do the same.

Court adjourned at roughly 11AM today(Monday, May 18th).

The schedule as it stands:

Tuesday(tomorrow): Remaining defense witnesses, if there are any, followed by the Prosecution's one rebuttal witness(an expert/specialist of some kind). There is a "50/50" chance that we will hear closing statements tomorrow, Pat Bouldin allegedly said. If not tomorrow, expect to hear them on Wednesday.

Notes:
-Any ideas on what should become of this blog post-trial? Feel free to suggest!
-Dull dark brown sweater vest. Defense Attorney Darren Wolff looking extra Dapper Dan in the three piece suit as well.

The Runt of the Family

2009-05-14T14:46:00.010-05:00

Day 13

The defense continued and almost completed it's case for the penalty phase.

The first witness was one Tammi Dehay. She has known Green for about 10 years, beginning with becoming friends with one of Green's cousins before she was introduced to him. She spoke of having an ongoing correspondence with Green, even during his imprisonment during the past 3 years. She said that Steven is "hilarious, he's one of the most brilliant people I know." Darren Wolff then asked her about her relationship with Green, to which she tearfully responded "he's my friend and I care about him deeply."

The next witness was a school teacher named Suzi Woolsey from Argyle, Texas. Pat Bouldin(D) asked Woolsey about her relationship with Green, she thoughtfully said "he's the son of my mother's brother," making them cousins. She spoke of occasional visits with Steven and his family when they were younger, mostly on weekends and often during the summer. She talked about her memories of playing with Green and his brother Doug at a young age, while her older sister babysat Danielle(or 'Dani'), their little sister, while the mother, Roxanne, was out at work.

She talked about their way of life, describing the family home, "there were lots of toys....Roxanne's sewing equipment took up a lot of room...it was kind of cluttered." She also remembered Roxanne and defendant Green's father separating. She herself testified that she didn't get along well with Roxanne, telling tales of being a pest to Roxy, making her frustrated and flustered. "I knew I didn't have to obey her and that I could get away with anything."

Getting to the important part of her testimony, Bouldin directed her to the general style of the Green family's way of life. Asked about the structure, she testified, "There wasn't any. I was always a little...uneasy, while I was at their house." She talked about how her family was structured with rules, expectations, chores, and contrasted that by noting that none of these things existed in the Green household. She testified that as she got older, she learned that Roxanne had an affair with a local plumber, causing their divorce, and the later remarrying to Daniel Carr(who testified two days ago). She spoke of the home made movies, usually filmed on holidays, and how they stopped occurring after the divorce; her chances to spend time with Green and his siblings was greatly diminished.

She continued with more stories. She talked about spending the night at Roxanne and Daniel's new house in Clearlake, TX(they moved the family there after the divorce). She spoke of the house being dirty and very cluttered, and how Roxanne and Daniel weren't even home when she arrived. She told the jury that after she returned home, she had to shave her hair off after finding head lice, just before her senior year. According to her, this cause more riffs between her and her aunt.

She testified that when she visited the family when they lived in Seabrook, TX, the house appeared as if it hadn't been cleaned at all, as well how she only saw Roxanne once during her two day stay at the house. "Not only that but all three kids had at least one if not two friends over." She talked about Doug and his relationship with Steve, " Doug and his friends were  mean to Steve...they told him to shut up and were very physically and verbally abusive." She testified that she couldn't think of any sibling in any family that was as mean as Doug, and also about how Doug and his friends ganged up on Steve. "Roxanne was never around to stop the bullying like in other families," she commented. Danielle was injured by Doug's abuse thee separate times she told the court.

Pat Bouldin lead Woolsey to her opinion of Roxanne, who she said was "selfish, conceited....she never put her kids first in any of her decisions." She told the court that Roxanne allowed Danielle to drop out of school in the 6th grade. "Doug and Dani were her favorites...Doug could do what he wanted and Danielle was her princess on a pedestal." Bouldin then asked her how she would rate Roxanne as a mother on a scale of one to ten. Woolsey gave her a 2 out of 10. "What about Daniel Carr as a father?" "3 or 4..maybe," Woolsey said. She said that she would "never" have classified the house as "loving."

Green while in high school

As Green's life progressed, she spoke of hoping for his future. When he began discussing the military, she said she felt like "this is going to be a good thing." After he graduated from basic, they spoke on the phone, she told the court. "This was the first time he'd ever sounded like he respected someone.....he sounded changed." When she saw Green after his tour in Iraq, she said that he "was almost unrecognizable...his eyes were sunken in, he was thinner than I'd ever seen him." She talked about Green's living with them for a short period, after his return to Iraq. "He didn't eat much, he didn't sleep much....he seemed very uneasy." Pat Bouldin also questioned her about the current relationship between herself and Steve's brother Doug: "Well...he calls when he needs something...like a place to stay or something...he doesn't hang around. Steve, he'll call me just to talk to me."

In ending his direct, Bouldin asked Woolsey on her thoughts of Green as a person. "He's so caring, loyal...he's a nice, funny person." Like Wolff, Bouldin asked her if she would keep in contact with Green while imprisoned, she agreed. She stopped with "He was such an adorable child, just wanted a little attention...he's like a little brother to me."

For cross-ex, Brian Skaret(P) just made the point that "Green had high potential, did he not?" and that he had opportunities "as most people do?" Woolsey agreed to both.

(Note: This witness testified for nearly 3 and a half hours and giving me seven pages of notes. As a reference, everything you see above this took about four pages. This witness was long winded to say the least, therefore what you see will be only the bigger points.)

The next witness was Jan Vogelsang, a clinical social worker and mental health expert, owning her own practice in Greenville, NC. She is licensed and verified. She began my talking about her job description... "to do a bio-psychological social assessment." She spoke of reviewing "hundreds" of documents, relating to the case as well as Green's history and ancestry(see annotation #1 at the bottom for more detail).

She began by testifying that through her review, she found Steven Green "as a young child, had an enormous amount of potential, as well as many gifts that were left untouched and undiscovered  due to neglect. He was also surrounded by an immense amount of chaos in his life...but despite this, when things around him were calm, he too was calm. His behavior reflects his surroundings." She also mentioned that "he was a classic case of simply being born at the wrong time, in the wrong place, into the wrong family."

She began telling the tales of Green's ancestry. "They were a hard working family, a boot strappin' crew, they believed in service to their country and to their community." Green was very attentive during this portion of her testimony, behaving as if he was in a class, trying to learn his own history. She talked about Green's views of life in his earlier years, "he grew up with a view of life having the 50's traditions as in the TV show 'Happy Days,' so when his life was the complete opposite of that, it was detrimental to him." She talked about Green's extended family military history. She began talking about Roxanne, Green's mother. "Roxanne's family live in the South, they worked hard to see that each generation would be better than the last, but they also had a running theme of alcoholism and substance abuse." She mentioned Steven Green's grandfather killing himself after a particularly rough drinking binge. She talked about Roxanne's being spoiled throughout her life, as well as being the center of attention. She talked about her 'rebellious-ness', and her early experimentation and use of drugs(LSD, Valium, speed, coke..."anything she could get her hands on).

She got on the subject of Roxanne's marriage to John Green, with a history of how they arrived there. "They were an immature couple for their age...they lacked any real sense of growing up....they enjoyed the nightlife. They lacked the maturity to realize that drinking and partying at some point comes to a stop. They were more like kids than their own kids..[...]..they reinforced each others drug and alcohol use."

She spoke about the unexpected pregnancy with Doug. She testified that when Doug was born, "Roxanne instituted a lifestyle change within herself." She calmed down with her partying, and began experimenting with various forms of religion(including "The Science of the Mayan Church"), she changed her haircut, and even had a baby shower. But, "after a year of being a homemaker and giving birth," Vogelslang told the jury, "she returned to her work-and-party lifestyle." While Doug was unexpected, he was still born into a world of happiness and excitement. "Green was unexpected, but he was not treated as Doug was." She testified that Roxanne was unhappy about being pregnant and losing her figure once again. "During pregnancy and after birth, Green was looked at as a nuisance," Vogelsang said. Green was "not easily soothed, he didn't eat well, he barely slept at all, and didn't nurse well either." She reiterated that other family members had to step in and assist with the care of Green.

The snowball started rolling. "Roxanne often laughed at and joked about Steve," she told the court, "Roxanne unfortunately never realized Steven's gifts, and in doing so, made him an easy target." Something that subtly shocked the courtroom, she testified that in her interview with Green, he told her that Roxanne "had told Steven that if he had been born in colonial times, she would legally have been allowed to take him out to the forest and kill him."

She talked about Green in his younger age. "According to interviews, he was bowlegged as a child, making him a very uncoordinated, clumsy child."...[...]..."As a child, when he was with anyone but his primary family, he did great!" giving an example of his aunt teaching him to count and to read, as well as reading to him. "again, when someone paid attention to Steve, and provided a structured environment around him, he'd do fine." She spoke about Green being very neglected as a child, and because of that, having a very low self esteem. "He acted in ways that would get him rejected by his family, mostly by trying to get attention in the first place." She told a story of Green creating a painting of a heart with an arrow through it, which he tried to give to Roxanne. "Roxanne just turned and walked away, according to Steven." She also told how Roxanne ignored Doug's beatings of Steve. "Roxanne unfortunately thought that children should discipline themselves....it contributed to her children being socially inept."

She told the story of how Roxanne began having an affair, and the subsequent divorce between herself and John. That forced Green to move to northern Texas to live with his uncle. "While there," she said, "he received some minor possession charges...one for selling beer in his school parking lot so that he could buy food, and another where he was caught with a blunt(marijuana cigar) in his hand." She spoke of important things Green didn't have. "One of the most important things a parent can teach a child is that they will face adversity in their life and how to face it. Green was not taught to face adversity, at all."

She spoke of Roxanne's relationship with Doug. "She made Doug a best friend, and a confidant," she said. This occurred more so during the periods of time when Roxanne lacked a significant male friend or boyfriend or husband. "She turned Doug into a substitute male...which gives that male too much power. She shared too much with him. She empowered him as the enforcer of the house, she put him in charge." Doug was also extremely abusive. "Doug was mentally, physically, and emotionally abusive to Steve and Danielle." The court has already heard testimony about Danielle taking three trips to the emergency room due to injuries suffered from Doug, something I left out of the blog previously. "Roxanne felt that Steve deserved Doug's abuse." She talked about Roxanne actually missing Steve's graduation from basic training. She ended by talking about the end result. "The accumulation of tumultuous events in his life made him into Steven Green."

Court adjourned early at roughly ~3:30 PM today, and will be out of session until Monday, May 19th. The defense has to prepare more witnesses, presumably Green's direct family(Roxanne, Doug, Danielle, and John). Personally, my guess is that those witnesses were ready today, but the defense doesn't want to give the jury time to forgot them over the weekend. The prosecution is also reportedly bringing in their own expert to combat the brain analysis etc. 

Seeya Monday.

Notes-:
1-Annotation of Vogelsang's research-: Owns her own private practice. Worked at the Veteran's Affairs for a number of years. Licensed by the South Carolina Social Workers, as well as being board certified. Conducted a total social, bio-psychological, and historical assessment of Green's family. Conducted interviews, reviewed documents, did research on the ancestry, reviewed child welfare documents, court records, family systems, neurological documents. Interviewed all of the following: Danielle, Suzi Woolsey, Patricia Ruth(aunt to Green), Uncle David, Doug, Allma Thomas, Steven Green,  Green's maternal grandmother( a Simolke ), Greg Simolke, Daniel Carr, Jim Isclaw, Chase Bentley, Roxanne, Cody Ray and Joni Ray, & father John Green. Reviewed lots of mental records, and visited Midland, TX as well as other cities, reviewed school records, employment records, previously conducted psychological interviews, as well as drug treatment records.

2- Will someone please bring me RedBull or maybe some Starbucks? I have a sneaky suspicion that there are a few people in the courtroom who are getting a little peeved about my "inability to stay alert"(or awake perhaps) during the more monotonous parts of testimony. :(

3- CNN is now doing daily coverage as well. See their latest here. While we're at it, check out The Common Ills as they are also doing near-daily coverage. Other sites covering the trial: Expose The War Profiteers, Firedoglake/Oxdown, The West Kentucky Star.

4- IF you actually read this far then you're obviously quite dedicated: therefore I'm going to entrust you to tell me what should become of this blog after the trial, because I honestly don't know. Leave a comment or drop me an email at eviio - AT - comcast - DOT - net.

Controversy and Conjecture

2009-05-14T08:29:00.007-05:00

ALERT: THIS IS NOT THE DAILY BLOG POST!

AS THE TITLE STATES, THIS POST REGARDS CONTROVERSY AND CONJECTURE SURROUNDING THE LEADERSHIP OF BRAVO COMPANY/1ST PLATOON WHILE IN IRAQ. THIS IS NOT THE DAILY BLOG POST DETAILING YESTERDAY'S TESTIMONY. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR YESTERDAY'S TRIAL BLOG, SCROLL DOWN OR CLICK HERE.

You may recall that earlier this week, we heard testimony from one Eric Lauzier, more specifically, his opinion on the leadership he experienced while serving in Iraq.

As I wrote on Monday:

The most controversial person to testify yet, Eric Lauzier was called to the stand. He testified about leadership, because he HAS been discharged from the Army and will suffer no repercussions from his testimony. He nearly vilified the army:

When asked about Sgt. Fenlason(the commanding officer over the co-defendants who wasn't present at TCP2 on March 12th), he appeared to become testy, saying “that man was tactically incompetent. He had what, sixteen years of service, with only four of those years spent ‘on the line’. He never fired his weapon and he’d never been fired at, he hid out at TCP1 the entire time, in fact I think he told me ‘I’ve never seen an insurgent before.’ He was a ‘hider-and-slider.’”(A hider-and-slider is a term used to describe an Army officials who “hide” from combat while sliding up the ranks). He was asked about the Combat Stress program and it’s reputation. He told the court that he overheard Cortez ask Fenlason for permission to go to Combat Stress. According to Lauzier, Fenlason’s response to Cortez was “you want to take that punk ass route? Go right ahead.”

I have received a response from Mr. Jeff Fenlason himself, regarding these allegations, which he requests that I post. It is as follows:

"Thanks.

I am not worried too much about what people think about me
anymore. They are entitled to their opinion - and I have mine about many of them as well! As you know, what you have been told or heard in court does not represent the whole story, just the parts of the story that suit different people's need. I have consistently believed that this case is unique, that it has leadership and other complexities that the Army should spend time looking at, and that to tell any story accurately you have to see the same issue from all sides equally.

There are those who were in my platoon who did not like, nor agree with my decisions. That's fine. They were not asked to make those decisions. I was and did. I have never shied away from hard questions regarding them. They were then, and remain tactically sound. Not because I say so, but because the Army said so. I have been investigated, judged, examined, defined etc pretty thoroughly. Somebody's opinion of me in an email or anonymous post doesn't really matter much.

In the world of instant editorial that we live in, people should be careful to opine about anything without all the facts. For example, Ms. Mellor's comments the other day that I responded to I thought were spot-on. Her post yesterday however shows an lack of understanding of the law. And yet she is entitled to her opinion.
Jeff Fenlason"

Turbulent but Spirited Childhood

2009-05-14T00:14:00.005-05:00

Day 12
A plethora of witnesses testified today, with more doctors and officials, and some of Steven Green’s high school friends.

Testimony began with a combat veteran and military law professor Gary Solis. Defense attorney Darren Wolff took Solis through his background information. Solis fought in Vietnam and went on to London School of Law before holding teaching "The Art of Armed Conflict" at West Point and now at Georgetown Law. He also served as a prosecutor in 400 military cases and as a military military judge for 330 cases. Wolff questioned him on the importance and purpose of military training: “It imbues one with obedience to authority, it trains an individual to respect and respond, and it makes that response instinctive.” He spoke about the erosion of morale that can be caused by combat, and the test of leadership. "Perceptions become blunted, over time."

 When asked if judgment can also be degraded as well, Solis listed off the stresses of combat(being fired at near-constantly, less than four(4) hours of sleep), “it was bad in the best of conditions…it’s not long before judgment will degrade and soldiers will become…callused [to the stresses]." Marisa Ford(P) crossed-examined Solis on his thoughts about his service in the Marines versus the Army, as well as if the “fog of war” would obligate a soldier to commit a murder/gang rape. Solis vehemently denied this, stating that the soldier would “be obligated to not comply with an unlawful order.”

The next “batter” to step up to the “plate” was Andrew Horne.  Once again, Wolff had his witness take the jury through their background info. He was a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Marine Corp for 26 years, having finished up in Iraq. He also made the court aware that he had reviewed multiple documents regarding this case, and also interviewed co-defendant James Barker and Eric Lauzier. Darren Wolff questioned him on Green’s assisting with the medical evacuation of Britt and Lopez. Horne stated that there had been a discussion between officials to formally recognize and award Green for his heroism, but admitted that through his study of related investigation documents, he determined that Green was never actually acknowledged for his heroism. He also testified that of all his experience in the military, 1st Platoon had "by far" the most extraordinary casualties, in the shortest amount of time, as well as being exposed to more threats than any other platoon he’d ever seen. He brought up the lack of hot food for the soldiers, and their lengthy 21 day rotation, and the lack of protection equipment, “I’ve never seen that kind of disregard for a platoon.”

Darren Wolff finished with asking Horne what his personal thoughts were on doing three man IED sweeps in the morning(something the four defendants in this case were required to do)… he termed it as a “suicide mission.” He would later add that whenever he would leave his garrison(while serving in Iraq) he would be traveling in no less than six armored vehicle(humvee) caravan, contrasting the pity in comparing his enforced travel strategy with the former soldier’s IED sweeps.

For the cross, Marisa Ford forced Horne to admit that he only interviewed Barker and Lauzier. She also questioned him on the conduct and it’s inconsistencies with the MOS(mission operation specialty AKA mission). She showed Horne the “15-6” investigation report which Horne had reviewed prior to his testimony. In a “15-6” , an objective and unrelated investigator documents his/her legal investigation about higher-scale events involving the Army and it's soldiers, and it in part looks at leadership. Ford pointed out that “no one” that the investigator interviewed said that they had any issue with the leadership. But when Darren Wolff came back for re-direct, he noted that Captain Goodwin requested support three times and that Colonel Kunk said that Goodwin wasn’t properly using the resources he’d already been given. As a result, the investigator recommended the removal of Captain Goodwin.

The defense brought Jim Isclaw to the stand. At entry, Isclaw winked at Green when their eyes met. Isclaw, a native of Alvarado, TX, is an assistant football coach, golf coach, and teacher at Alvarado High School, and has been there for 23 years. To be quite frank, he’s a good ol’ country boy, and he’s got the persona of one as well. In his face, you can see the hours/days/years spent in the hot(understatement) Texan sun, calling plays and yelling at players. The attorney got straight to the point by beginning with “Do you remember Steven Green?” Isclaw immediately fired back with “I’ll never ferget ‘im…there’s some kids you just don’t forget.” He spoke of meeting Steven in the summer of his freshman year for the football team’s two-a-day workouts during the summer. He spoke of Green living with his uncle, David. He highlighted on his memory of green: his far and few between class/school absences, “he had very good attendance…in fact I did some research and he only had four absences that entire year,” and about his personality as he remembered it, “he was a very likable guy, very enjoyable, he was easy to spot and when you did see him you could count on him to put a smile on your face.” He told of Green being a typical “knucklehead” and getting into small trouble. Defendant Green couldn’t help but to laugh. He spoke of Green’s unfaltering attendance at the varsity games, “he never missed a game.” He told of Green’s undying sense of humor, “he was a funny guy, he’d do this one leg chicken dance at all the pep rallies.” This humor/dance would become a recurring theme throughout the rest of the days’ testimony. He gave the courtroom a laugh when he spoke of Green’s “lack of” athletic ability in playing wide receiver. The jury and audience was shown a picture from the yearbook of Green on the football field, “looking for an opening” against Arlington Heights, to which Isclaw commented, “If he had the ball against Arlington Heights…. We were either way ahead or way behind,” bringing a few chuckles. Wolff began a difficult line of questioning in the witnesses by asking Isclaw “If Green were to be executed, what impact would that have on you?” Isclaw visibly thought about his answer, and you could almost see his stomach churning as he responded, “It’d….it would break my heart…(pausing)…he’s one of my own. 185 days of school to get to know him, I know that don’t seem like much but he was always one that I liked and remembered…I’d be saddened…(pause)…I believe it’d crush me.” No cross from the prosecution.

The next witness was Chase Bentley, a 24 year old from Lovett, Texas. He just completed his Masters Degree in Civil Engineering last week, and is already engaged with a wedding on December 14th, he told the court. He spoke of meeting Green during his junior year of high school, when Green was only a freshman(Green only attended Alvarado for his freshman year). As a requirement, football players must run track in the spring, which was where Green and Bentley met. When asked what his impression of Green was, he quickly spoke of having “only great memories. He was just one of the fellas” He spoke of Green being “the class clown….this guy was funny.” When asked about his track running ability, Bentley grinned profusely for a few seconds before eluding to his opinion that “well…he was fun to watch, let’s just put it that way.” Once again, his testimony ended with what his thoughts would be if Green were to be executed, “I couldn’t imagine…(long, thoughtful pause)…he lost his father and….I can’t imagine that with a set predetermined date and…” His testimony ended there, again with no cross examination.

The next witness to be called to the stand was Cody Ray. Like Isclaw, he too, could be considered a good ol' country boy, with the blue plaid button down and blue jeans with cowboy boots to prove it. He spoke of being a manager at an oil reserve in Midland, Texas. He first told a story of Green getting headbutted in the nose before practice one day, and how Green never “gave up” who it was who’d given him a bloody nose and t-shirt, and how he proceeded to wear his bloody t shirt throughout the day.

He, like others, spoke of Green’s “very good” sense of humor. He told a story to the amount of, “you know when you tell a joke that’s a knee slapper to you, it’s just hilarious for you but no one else seems to get it? Well Steve would always laugh, no matter what, no matter how stupid the joke.” He told more stories of Green “perfecting” the chicken dance during his year at Alvarado and smashing “case upon case” of soda can on his head, “he was an entertainer lemme tell ya.” He spoke of having the same attitude as Green, “we were knuckleheads, we got into trouble that 14 and 15 year olds get into.” He also talked about Green living with him and his family off and on throughout the year. “I tell you what, that boy can eat like it ain’t no body's bidness. My family can eat, my mother cooks us big meals because of that, but you know he can put my dad  to shame.” Wolff then proceeded to ask if he still considered Green a friend, and he responded, “Absolutely. He is welcome at my house any time.”

The next witness was Joni Ray. As you probably already figured out(c'mon, put it together) she is the mother of the aforementioned witness, Cody. She was tearful throughout her testimony. She talked about taking Steve home from football practice and going out to eat after the games. She said he “was very respectful, and extremely mannerly…said ‘yes ma’am and ‘no ma’am’ all the time, always picked up after ‘imself took out the trash.” She told the court that Green was always thankful for her cooking, “oh yes he loved my cookin’.” When asked what her relationship was, tears welling up in her eyes, she painstakingly stated that “he’s like one of my children… I remember the sweetest…him walking in and asking ‘what’s for dinner?!’… I can see him outside playing and riding bikes to this day.” Defendant Green succeeded in trying to keep a straight face during this but, more importantly, you could tell he had to try.

Next up to bat was Daniel Carr. Carr grew up in Midland, TX, and is still there working as an instrument technician. He spoke of meeting Steve in the fall of 1992 after he met Green’s mother, Roxanne. They married in July of 1993. He spoke of working extra hours in the following years, and with Roxanne working nights, they weren’t home a lot for their three kids. “Roxy was always…she had a lot of friends and she was always out with them or out shopping, and she preferred the night job because of the money.” He remembered fighting with Roxanne about the money situation and her night jobs, adding that “[he] regret[s] doing that in front of the kids,” as well as being verbally abusive.  Defendant Green looked down.

He talked about becoming more and more at odds with Roxanne and how he began to feel that Steve and himself were the “outsiders” of the family. “He felt left out of the affection of his mother,” when her affection for brothers Doug and Danny was brought up. “Her patience with him was a lot shorter,” he testified. He also spoke of Doug’s nickname for Steve, “Demon Spawn,” and also of more than one incident where Doug’s friends held Steve down while Doug allegedly “gave Steve a beating.” According to Carr, Green always did “okay” in school. He told the jury that he separated with Roxanne in 2001, and that shortly afterward Green had a falling out with her as well. Green then wanted to join the Army, which Carr assisted Green in doing so. The first time these particular facts have come to light, Green had to attend a Zion Christian Academy and achieve a “simplified” high school diploma to get his misdemeanor alcohol possession charges waived so that he could join the Army.  When asked the same question attorneys had asked of others, he responded, “I’ll always stay in touch with him. In my heart, he’s my son and he always will be.”

The final witness for the day was Allma Ruth Thomas. She spoke of Green being friends with her son, skateboarding and playing video games. “He was like a son of my own.” She talked about having an open house to all kids, laughing as she said “we were all buddies.” On Green’s personality at that time, she told the jury that “He’s a very…outgoing kid.” On Green’s sense of humor, like others, she agreed. “Oh yes, he was the clown of them all.” She told a story of selling Green his first car, a 1981 Oldsmobile, and of Green, in typical high school fashion(I myself can testify to this), calling it “his pimp mobile.” Like others she stated that she felt like a mother figure to Green. “I treated him like my own as I did every other kid.” She would later testify that “He was a good kid, always looking for some way to help. He had the dreams of a kid, he wanted to be president.”

When Darren Wolff replied by mentioning the beyond-serious crimes that Green has been charged with and Green’s ineligibility to become President at present, she, like the previous mom, became tearful. “It’s somethin’ I’d never dreamed of… I still love ‘im with all my heart.” Wolff asked her what this felt like to her. She broke down crying, as if already mourning Green’s impending imprisonment, “Well…,” looking directly at the jury, “what do your kids mean to you? You’ll always love them, and you always forgive them no matter what, and try to help them, and hope that things get better for ‘em.” This elicited some small reaction from nearly everyone in the courtroom. Wolff repeated something he had done with all the other witnesses, asking if “[they] would like to stay in contact with Steven Green, even while in prison?” All had furiously agreed, if not begged. Allma Thomas finished her testimony by crying a little more as she told a story of Green asking her if she minded the collect calls and having to pay for them, to which she tearfully replied that “no I don’t mind, I’ll never mind no matter if he just wants to say hi or hear someone’s voice that he can trust or anything…(long pause before mustering the energy to end with)...I feel like I’m in a nightmare and that this child is in a nightmare and that no one can escape it, not even God.” Green, appearing speechless in his maroon sweater vest, looked down.
 -Notes:

Combat Incapable

2009-05-12T18:16:00.019-05:00

Day 11

The penalty phase continues.
Private Green and Private Eric Heath(a good friend) just after graduating from basic training

Both lot and little happened today. When court reconvened shortly after 9 AM, Dr. Ruben Gur was called to the stand. Obviously a man of intelligence, Gur spoke of his studies on brain function and behavior, and of his studies at the Hebrew University in Israel, Michigan State, Stanford, and his current residency at the University of Pennsylvania; and you had better believe he's got the collegiate proffesor's accent to back it up(see for yourself in the video below, edit: video only so that you can understand his accent...nothing to do with the trial)->

Dr. Gur spent the first hour of his testimony working with defense attorney Pat Bouldin in giving the court audience a High school Biology 101 lesson on the brain and it's various parts and functions. He took us on a tour of the brain.

Not word for word: "Green has frontal lobe damage....particularly on ze left side.[According to Gur] This means Green has difficulty making decisions, and does not work well under disorganization nor without being told what to do. He is or would be happy to follow a leader because he doesn't want to be pressured. He works well in a structured environment."

When asked if he thought Green would do well in the military, judging by Green's MRI, Dr. Gur agreed. "What about in prison?" Bouldin questioned. "With the structure...yes, without structure you can expect trouble." Again, more defense strategy in trying to save their client's life. On cross, Jim Lesousky questioned Gur on how Green could be "more prone to act on his impulses" when the four soldiers "sat around playing cards and planning the rape." For redirect, Bouldin brought out Green's seeking leadership as opposed to taking leadership as a response.

The defense's next witness was Dr. Greg Simolke, seen pictured here.

Simolke is Steven Green's uncle, he is an obstetrician in Marion, North Carolina. He talked about the family. His sister, Roxanne, is Steven's mother(expect to hear from her soon). He told the court of Steven's older brother Doug, and his younger brother Danny. When describing Roxanna, Steven's mom, he paused for a minute before answering that she is "a 'live in the moment' type of person,'... someone acts on impulse and doesn't give a lot of thought [to the consequences]." He said that he had always known her personality made it hard to raise kids, "I have a polar opposite personality to hers and even I'm having trouble raising kids." He talked about how Roxanna always worked a lot at night and wasn't home much for her kids. The next subject was Steven himself.
Steven at a younger age

You could see the emotion growing in Simolke's face and demeanor. He spoke of Steven, Doug, and Danny not having many rules. When asked about Doug's "being tough" on Steve, he testified that "Doug...was hard on Steve...(pause)...it felt like that...wore on Steve. Doug was sort of..." At this point, Dr. Simolke broke down crying and had to pause for a few minutes to regain his composure. He was given some water and he continued. "Doug was sort of...in charge, but he was too young to manage Steve." Bouldin asked what his(Simolke's) thoughts were on Green and he "generally..I felt sorry for Steve. I felt that he wasn't completely normal....nothing drastic or super unusual...he was generally left out [throughout] his life. (pauses...more tears) Nothing ever worked out for him, he had a black cloud hanging over him..(pause)..I just didn't think life was workin' out for him." During all of this, Green was noticed staring straight ahead.

Simolke testified that he wouldn't have called Steven Green a leader. "No....I don't want to be offensive...he wasn't a leader...anyone who knows Steve wouldn't say he was. He's a follower." Simolke testified about Green living with him for a few months, maintaining a C-average, before realizing that he was so far behind in school that wouldn't be able to graduate high school that year with the rest of his classmates; after which dropping out and moving back to his hometown of Midland, TX where he got his GED.

Simolke spoke of his memories of Steve, one of beginning a tandem bike riding relationship after Steven was denied from the football team for bad grades. He told the jury that he "was prouder at Steven's military basic training graduation than any other time." He too testified that he thought Steve "could make a life for himself in prison, he's a no needs guy, he doesn't ask for much and he adapts to his circumstances well." During this, the paralegal at the defense team was wiping her eyes.

Lieutenant Colonel Karen Marrs made her second appearance next. She was called to testify over things that the defense was not allowed to cover in the guilty phase of the trial. She testified that she told Colonel Kunk that 1st Platoon's mental health status was "red," or "combat incapable." She also admitted that Kunk was aware of the hostility and vengeance that was prominent in the 1st Platoon. Kunk recommended the platoon get some rest, according to Marrs. On cross, Lesousky asked Marrs if it was 1st Platoon or Bravo Company that was "combat incapable," to which she replied that Bravo Company was status red, but "1st Platoon had it the worst."

Dr. Pablo Stewart was called to the stand last. He is a professor at UCSF with a specialty in PTSD, psychiatry, and alcohol/substance abuse. He mainly testified that while Col. Marrs had followed her psychiatric guidelines "to the nail," she did not give a correct diagnosis of then Pfc. Green. He also testified that the Army's psychiatric standards at that time did not meet the "standard of care" for soldiers like those in 1st Platoon.

Expect more family to testify in the upcoming days.

Notes:
-John Scruton, who was Green's Army comrade that testified yesterday, was present in the courtroom today. An exchange of mouthed-words was seen, with a few head nods and grins and laughs to boot.

(EDIT @ 12:15AM 5/13/2009): I forgot to put what he was wearing today and I've received emails complaining about this. I am fascinated. Blue polo and khakis. He also never rolls his sleeves up soas not to show his tattoos.

Hangin' in the balance

2009-05-11T20:09:00.007-05:00

Day 10
(NOTE: This is by far the longest blog yet, a lot happened today, and in trying to give you, the reader, a play-by-play of what's going on, it's hard to leave things out and still get the whole picture. Grab a cup of coffee or something!)

Artist Sketch of the proceedings(better picture to come)

Opening statements in the sentencing phase of USA v. Green were heard today, along with more testimony from various Iraqi family members.

And so it began. Marisa Ford of the prosecution opened up by speaking about murdering children and how terrified Abeer Al-Janabi must have been before she was killed. “The murder of a child is an unspeakable act, especially an innocent child, which all children are. Abeer’s last moments must have been filled with terror as she was raped while her parents and little sister were shot in the room next door. And then, by one of the men who was sent there to protect them, she was murdered.”
Lots of legal jargon made it’s way into the opening statements. Marisa Ford reminded the jury that they are encouraged and in fact, required to reconsider the evidence which was heard in the guilty phase of the trial. She spoke of imposing the death penalty, and how doing so requires that they, the jury, by law, must outline and note the aggravating circumstances, especially in the death of Abeer, which according to Ford was committed in an “especially heinous, cruel, and depraved manner.”

She repeated how the four soldiers committed the crime on March 12th, 2006, and reiterated how they agreed on the plan, changed clothes, “brought weapons and took tools to complete their mission,” and how they worked to cover up the evidence. She told the jury how they would hear of the impact on the victims, and how the Al-Janabi family was like many families from both Iraq and “right here in Paducah, Kentucky.” She ended her opening by elaborating on a quote from Winston Churchill: “All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope.” Ford defiantly expressed, “The defendant Steven Dale Green failed to live up to his duty, he didn’t show mercy to Abeer, he took away the two remaining brother’s hope for a normal life, he doesn’t deserve mercy.”

Pat Bouldin was nervous at the beginning of his opening, saying that he’s “never had a man’s life, nor his liberty, in [his] hands.” He reiterated a quote that “in peace time sons bury their fathers, in war fathers bury their sons.” He began to talk about the brothers who had to bury their brothers, referring to the Army and the brotherhood within. He talked about the psychiatrist Marrs who said that losing a military brother is “like losing a child.” He thanked the jury for being so attentive, noting that the Defense team respected the verdict. Also a big point, Bouldin remembered the entire trial in saying “Steven has never denied his actions on March 12th, 2006.”

He talked about broadening the scope of the evidence for the jury to “help the jury understand the context.” He listed the two(2) possible sentences, which are life without the possibility of parole, and the death sentence. He took a turn for the empathetic in saying, “these sentences are both the death penalty...because Steven will die in prison.” Trying to save his client’s life, Bouldin continued, “The decision is about if he will die of natural causes, or if he’ll be taken to a room, by government officials, employees, and sat in front of some witnesses, and killed.”

“Justice must be served,” he would later say, “but justice must be incorporated with fairness. Steven Green did not do this by himself.” He spoke of the leadership issues and in trying to make connections, saying, “Scott Wendelsdorf(D) is my boss—I do what he tells me. But,” he added, “in the Army, if you don’t do as you’re told, you go to prison.”

He told of Green’s lying about being the only person who committed the crimes, “while Steve protected his ‘friends,’ they were plotting against him to shift the blame from themselves.” He reminded the jury that Cortez, Barker, and Spielman will be able to see a parole board in 7 years, by military court martial, but the “ring leader,” is in Federal Court, sentenced to die in prison, one way or another. “Is it really fair?” Bouldin beckoned. “ The letter head for the co defendants will say ‘parole board’. The letter for (points to) Green? Death.” Defendant Green looked down.

He touched on Green’s childhood, saying he “didn’t have the greatest childhood, it was a broken home.” There “was a fair amount of drinking, of neglect,” he told. He talked about Green’s needing a psychiatric follow up and how he didn’t get it. He mentioned the lack of leadership. “In the prosecution’s closing they talked about respect for life…yet here we are, debating the life of this man.” He played on the empathy once again, saying, “All of you have the choice of life or death, any one of you has the power of life…. Green will die in prison, but by whose hand?” He went through some of the lawyer jargon with aggravating circumstances, etc, before ending with “The 1st Platoon…Bravo Company has suffered enough deaths…do we have to kill one more?” Green stood solemnly as the jury exited.

The prosecution completed its case shortly after lunch. They called four total witnesses to the stand, who were all related to the family members. Each Iraqi minus young Ahmed greeted the court with a “may peace be upon you,” before beginning. The first was “Amina” Al-Janabi (I know that is incorrect spelling so if you can correct me, leave a comment or email me!). She was Qassim Hamza’s older sister. Qassim was Abeer’s father. She spoke of having a good relationship with Qassim, of him having a normal life, mostly directed towards giving his family a good life. She broke down crying while on the witness stand, with tissues in hand, but she spoke strongly. “What I say about him…isn’t enough. He cared for all of our family.” She went on to talk about how Qassim named his two daughters, Abeer and Hadeel, after her (Amina’s) children of the same name. She told of Fahkyriah(Abeer’s mother) being a strong, powerful woman. She talked about Abeer’s pride. “She was proud of being young, and she was proud of the freedom her father gave her. She was spoiled, her father never suppressed her.” She almost 'boarded a tangent train', her voice elevating as she said, “their life is destroyed currently, by a crime committed against their family, the kids don’t go to school…” She spoke of young Mohammed and Ahmed running up to her “countless” times, devastated over their loss, and how they “want to suicide.” Green’s eyes widened as he heard this.

When asked how she, along with her family and the boy’s grandmother, had tried to care for the boys, she “tries to care and help, but that’s not going to be their mother and father for them.” A picture of four young apparently Iraqi children was shown to the jury, and she named off Abeer, Mohammed, Ahmed, and Hadeel. This is the first time anyone has seen a picture of Abeer(at a different age) other than the one on her I.D. card. The defense didn’t present any kind of cross-examination for “Amina,” or for any of the other witnesses.

Mohammed Al-Janabi testified next, wearing an Under-Armor workout shirt. He was stout, lips pursed. He talked about his father’s memory; “I remember when we played together…when we would take rides in the car with Ahmed to the market.” Brian Skaret asked Mohammed if his father bought him everything he wanted at the market, and Mohammed grinned with a “yes.” “That sounds good!” Skaret added, allowing for some humor in the courtroom. He liked studying and going to school before the incident, but Mohammed no longer goes to school; when asked why, he said, “Because I no longer have the mood to study and go to school.” When questioned about his life now, he said things you might expect, “life with my grandmother is different, my parents aren’t like anyone else…their principles and how good they were to me.” Again, no cross-examination.

Ahmed Al-Janabi was next, appearing apprehensive. He told of how the family slept in the same room together. He talked a lot about Hadeel. “She would play with me. I found her one day in the courtyard and she asked me ‘why aren’t you playing with me Ahmed?’ We played hide-n-seek a lot.” He told the court how Qassim taught him to play soccer and helped him with homework, and how Fahrkyiah played with him and put him to bed. He also admitted that he was the troublemaker of the family, with help from Hadeel. He told of Abeer helping their mother with the cooking. When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, he said “A policeman, so I can protect myself, so I can protect my family, my community.” The youngster also already wants a wife.

Abu Farras testified next, his second time here in Paducah. He is Ahmed and Mohammed’s uncle. He reiterated many points already made by his family. He told of Fahkriyah’s dreaming of having a house next to his, and the care and work she put into her fruit orchard. He spoke of Qassim’s dreams of being the best family man, “but fate didn’t let him do that” he muttered. He told of Hadeel’s dreaming of school, and how he would give her toys when she had no money for them. “She wanted to have a fun filled life, but fate didn’t allow her to have fun, either.”

He told of Abeer’s thin, lanky features, and her occasionally problematic asthma. “She had the dreams other girls had, marriage, kids, just like any American family would here, but fate also led her a different direction,” pausing before adding “but…again, you can judge what happened.” He told of the horrible fits Mohammed and Ahmed had, how they wouldn’t talk for a long time and how they no longer have futures because they have quit school. “If they had died with their family it would be better for them.” He told of how HE has moved houses and neighborhoods because of the PTSD-like fear he contracted after the events of March 12th. He finished by reading a statement, perhaps speaking for all the Iraqis, speaking that he “wanted to thank everyone for the kindness they have shown us in this country, there are great people in this country. We now have a very different, clear view of this country.” He asked for justice for his nephews, and wished peace yet again.

After the lunch break, the defense began its case. SFC(Sergeant First Class) Philip Miller was called first. Attorney Darren Wolff, ever the professional, spoke with Miller about the conditions in Iraq, but not about the leadership. Miller, linear and descriptive, stated that since he was still in the army, he did not want to put his future in jeopardy by commenting on leaders who he might see again(remember this during Eric Lauzier’s testimony which is a few paragraphs down). Miller, with an attitude of someone who has seen a lot, reiterated several points already touched upon by the co-defendants, “the big issue was that you didn’t know who was an insurgent and who wasn’t. We were going out on missions without knowing why… so the causalities caused a lot of [disruption]. The big picture of what we were trying to do there didn’t make it down to us.”

He talked about seeing the emotion in Green’s face. He also highlighted that the conditions were in part due to the Army’s “armchair quarterback” style of command. “People were making decisions that weren’t actually THERE.” He repeatedly noted that “everyone deals with stuff differently.” He talked about how HE was blamed for Casica and Nelson’s deaths. “I don’t know if any of you have ever felt that…it’s unexplainable… to be told that YOU were responsible for the deaths of someone YOU and EVERYONE else knew…it sends a chill down your spine that you never want to feel again.” He said that the deaths were “the breaking point” for Steven Green. Jim Lesousky didn’t have much for cross-examination. He questioned Miller on the breaking point, to which Miller replied “Okay, everyone has the point in time where it’s like ‘okay I can go another day,’ and then you just snap…without any warning. Steven snapped.” Defendant Green bit his nails. When asked if Cortez failed in his leadership, he stated flatly, “hell yes, Cortez failed.”

The most controversial person to testify yet, Eric Lauzier was called to the stand. He testified about leadership, because he HAS been discharged from the Army and will suffer no repercussions from his testimony. He nearly vilified the army:

When asked about Sgt. Fenlason(the commanding officer over the co-defendants who wasn't present at TCP2 on March 12th), he appeared to become testy, saying “that man was tactically incompetent. He had what, sixteen years of service, with only four of those years spent ‘on the line’. He never fired his weapon and he’d never been fired at, he hid out at TCP1 the entire time, in fact I think he told me ‘I’ve never seen an insurgent before.’ He was a ‘hider-and-slider.’”(A hider-and-slider is a term used to describe an Army officials who “hide” from combat while sliding up the ranks). He was asked about the Combat Stress program and it’s reputation. He told the court that he overheard Cortez ask Fenlason for permission to go to Combat Stress. According to Lauzier, Fenlason’s response to Cortez was “you want to take that punk ass route? Go right ahead.”

When asked about Captain Goodwin, he testified that “his hands were tied, he felt responsible for Britt and Lopez’ deaths so he was put on R&R.” On Britt’s leadership, he stated that he was “the best lieutenant I ever had, he was a West Point graduate and he listened to his NCOs.” Lauzier got very frustrated when asked about Lt. Col. Kunk. “he would micromanage, he wouldn’t listen to what the NCOs were telling him… he would absolutely berate any officer who tried to say things like ‘we don’t have enough manpower.’ He threw lives away…when he showed up after Casica and Nelson got killed he said he ‘was tired of First Platoon feeling sorry for itself.’

The defense’s last witness was one of Green’s best friends from the Army. He spoke of the “do as you’re told” Army style. He went through basic training and employed at Fort Campbell with Green. When he told a story of someone playing a prank on Green by shaving his right eyebrow just before a family visiting day, Green showed more emotion than he ever had before, grinning and chuckling at the memory.

Notes:
-Dave Alsup from CNN was present in the courtroom today, as was a string reporter for the New York Times. Expect some of the European Media to show up as the week progresses, and possibly Al-Jazeera, the Arabic news network.
-A sketching artist was in the courtroom as well.
-Abeer means the smell of a flower, and Hadeel means the sound of water.
-Green ALWAYS listens to the sidebar(legal talk between judge and prosecution and defense/objections) via headphones. We, the audience, cannot hear what is being said.

GUILTY - ALL 16 COUNTS

2009-05-07T15:54:00.007-05:00

Day 9

"We never denied his involvement in this case. Is this verdict a suprise to us? No. The goal in this case has always been to save our client's life. We're going to go to the most important phase, which is the sentencing phase, and we're going to accomplish that goal."
- Darren C. Wolff, Military Attorney, Defense

The title says it all. The jury of nine women and 3 men deliberated for a total of ten hours and forty minutes, convicting one Steven Dale Green on all sixteen counts(list of counts listed below). Eight of these counts could bring a death penalty, when sentencing rolls around.
As the jury entered the court room, Green(red sweater vest) let out a large sigh, not of relief, but seemingly of anxiety, knowing the weight of the words to come. As Judge Thomas Russell stated "The court will now publish the verdict," Green interlaced his fingers and clasped them over his chin. Russell read the verdict flatly and absolutely. Green went from looking down at each "guilty" to eyeing the jury. His shoulders dropped as he was convicted of count #11, aggravated sexual abuse, realizing what this means. A paralegal at the defense table consoled Green by patting him on his back, even herself breaking down crying at the end of the verdicts.

After Russell finished reading the verdicts, he begged questions of the respective attorneys. Wendelsdorf, intending to ensure the absolution of the verdict, requested the jury be polled. Honorable Judge Russell asked each juror if they agreed with these verdicts, receiving a simple-but-sufficient yes from all jurors. Green watched the jury flatly.

After the jurors were excused, the attorneys approached the bench. Green shook his head ever so slightly, coming out of the super-stoic shell he has been in. He pursed his lips as the judge exited the courtroom.

The sentencing phase will begin on Monday, May 11th. Word on "the street"(aka around the court house) says that the Prosecution will present around a halfday to a full day's worth of a case. The defense will present around a week's worth of testimony.

See you on Monday.

Closing statements end; deliberation begins

2009-05-06T15:24:00.010-05:00

Day 8
Closing statements have been heard and the jury is in deliberation as I write this. Marisa Ford and Scott Wendelsdorf presented excellent closing statements, albeit containing much conjecture, therefore much of what you will find here is direct quotation from his/her statement. The bold and italics found in quotations from the closings are my interpretation of the emphasis implied by that attorney. Also, both attorneys attempted to attack each of the 17 counts Green was charged with on an individual basis; as a result, I have left the “nitty gritty” out, although by the length of this particular post I’m sure you’ll say otherwise.
Marisa Ford began the prosecution’s closing by giving a short description of the events that occurred on March 12th, 2006. She told of the squad herding the family into their house(pictured here).She reminded the jury of Barker and Cortez raping Abeer while “Green, behind closed doors, blew Qassim Hamza’s brains out with his Army supplied shotgun.” According to Ford, he then took the AK47, “which was provided to the family for protection against insurgents,” and used it on the mother, Fahkriyah, and their six year old daughter, Hadeel.” She went on to describe Green’s sexual assault and execution style murder of Abeer, before he “burned her, beyond all recognition.” At this, Green(in a blue Polo) looked down but was still listening intently. She talked about Green having had the AK47 disposed of, and his not-so-impaired judgement. “This was a crime…not committed in the chaos of battle, not committed while on an Army assigned mission, but a crime planned, and acted out in cold blood.” Marisa cattle prodded the Defense team, referring to Pat Bouldin’s “dumbing things down” for the jury in his opening statement. “To ‘dumb things down’ for you is an insult to your intelligence,” Ford told the jury, “you don’t need things dumbed down to know that what Stephen Green did was wrong.” Mr. Bouldin frowned as he listened. She talked about the non existent evidence that would dispute the planning of this crime(regarding the conspiracy counts). The killings were “a result of planning and deliberation,” Ford intoned(referring to the four counts of pre-meditated murder). “Everything you have seen before, during, and after the crimes, all the evidence, shows pre-meditation.” She brought up Jesse Spielman’s testimony of seeing Green searching the floor for the Army-tagged shotgun shell he’d used on Qassim, and Bryan Howard’s testimony of Green standing on his cot after the crime saying “that was awesome.” She brought up the testimony about the calamity that was Iraq. “It’s easy to bring in soldiers and let them tell you how horrible Iraq was, and we should feel sympathy…you wouldn’t be human if you didn’t feel sympathy for these men. But you have to put these events in context, and put the sympathy aside,” Ford implored the jury. Ford was perhaps a tad ill at ease in her closing, but remained convincing and confident. “When those men left the [Al-Janabi] house, they left in concert, knowing full well that they would destroy evidence and attempt to cover up their actions.” As can be expected, Ford brought in Green’s mental state: “He was acting in full mental capacity…he knew what he was doing.” She also combated the descriptions of life in Iraq: “ A soldier in the Civil War once said ‘war is hell,’ – this is not a new concept. We’ve known this since our country’s founding, and I will agree, Iraq probably was a kind of hell on Earth.” She played on the pride of the jury, coming from both the US and Paducah, “What’s good about the United States is our respect for human life. We’re here because of that respect. The victims in this case are suffering no less than if these crimes were committed right here in Paducah.” Ford also, perhaps a bit viciously, attacked the Defense’s case regarding the deaths of fellow soldiers. “Using Casica and Nelsons death’s as an excuse for these horrific crimes dishonors all of Bravo Company!” At this, Green stared at Ford, looking… ‘peeved,’ I’ll call it. A picture of James Barker and Sgt. Nelson She spoke of how thousands of other soldiers “fought hard, even if they had feelings of revenge and anger, but still fought fairly and did the right thing when noone was looking.” She ended her cross with something from Brian Skaret’s opening: “These men forfeited their right to call themselves U.S. soldiers... when they did this, they were thugs, who planned out the murder and rape of the Al-Janabi family.” Scott Wendelsdorf began with one word: “Madness. Madness? Madness…is the only way that we could wind up where we are today. These crimes might as well have happened on an alien planet far removed from our conscience and livelihood.” Wendelsdorf talked about how the Army broke [the soldiers], failed them, and in turn “drove them to do horrible things.” He implied the law by which Green wound up here in Paducah and not in a military court martial by allaying “after which he was dragged before a jury who will never be able to understand what those brave young men went through,” Wendelsdorf said, attitude in tow. “So we find ourselves here before a jury of “peers” who will give Stephen Green a verdict and possibly a sentence…perhaps the ultimate sentence.” Wendelsdorf told of Green succumbing to combat stress, and how the Army, “rather than treat him, help him, or cure him, gave him a handful of sleeping pills and sent him straight back into combat.” He reminded the jury of how he had to “drag” that testimony out of Colonel Kunk, and how even the psychiatrist Colonel Marrs ordered followups on Green, “and...? Nothing.” Wendelsdorf spoke of a two way street, implying that the Army had failed it’s soldiers. “If we send our young men over there to fight, under ‘engaged leadership’ as Kunk put it, we do it knowing that if our boys are injured, they will be cared for, if their mind’s are broken, they will be healed.” Perhaps the most tumultuous statement of the day’s proceedings, Wendelsdorf fired out “Did Green uphold being a U.S. soldier? HELL. NO.” he rhetorically questioned. “But did the Army uphold it’s part of the bargain? Absolutely not.” He brought in Anthony Yribe, telling of how “Yribe did nothing! Even when Green confessed to him!” He said that Yribe initiated the cover up, and that all the soldiers boldface lied to Kunk, CID, and others, but only when Yribe confessed did everyone else confess. “Sure, let’s talk about the cover up, but don’t point fingers at the defense table while you do it.” Scott rhetorically asked the jury “Steve sees his friends being murdered and blown to bits by insurgents… who’s bringing them to trial?!” He brought out Green’s age at the time of the crimes: “to a 19 year old kid, [Iraq is] a devastating reality.”
I noticed that Wendelsdorf left out the burning of the FOB which contained many a soldiers personal belongings, pictured below:Wendelsdorf sidelined the government's vying for the death penalty: "We have respect for human life in this country, yes. But Barker and Cortez were the ones who instigated the rape, and they will get to see a parole board in seven years. The prosecution is even writing letters to said parole board to assist them with their release from prison. Stephen Green? Not the case. Yes, we have respect for human life, but not across the board. They, the soldiers, got caught because Green reported the crime!" “Cortez? Parole board, 7 years. Barker? Parole board, 7 years. Spielman? Parole board, 7 years. Green? We want him dead.” He tried to allay some of the blame on Barker for picking the house and initiating the rape discussions. He reminded the jury that Ebel, Kunk, and Marrs all knew of Green’s state of mind, but let the snowball keep rolling. “Green was the weapon here, and Barker and Cortez pulled the trigger.” Wendelsdorf openly admitted that he wanted the jury to charge Green with 2nd degree murder, because the judge would handle the sentence, not the jury. For the ending, he agreed with the US that “Justice needs to be done for this family. Nothing justifies what happened to the Al-Janabi family. But, America owes it’s soldiers justice, too.” For the prosecution’s rebuttal, Jim Lesousky garnered some humor in saying “We(Scott & I) have been in court for a number of years, as you can tell by our white hair.” Wendelsdorf blurted out “objection!” getting a few laughs. “We agree on some things, disagree on others, but the most important thing, is that you are his peers and you must unanimously agree. Common sense is your most useful tool. War is bad and has been for 200 years, but that doesn’t justify the rape and murder of that family. I’m asking you to give a guilty verdict on all 16 counts” he ended. Green looked distastefully at Lesousky. After closing statements, Judge Russell excused six alternate jurors and gave the remaining jury of 9 women and 3 men their instructions(it was lengthy and repetitive). The jury went into deliberation at roughly 1PM Central time.
EDIT: Jury adjourned deliberation's for today at 5PM CST. They will resume at 9AM tomorrow.
Notes:
-The crowd in the courtroom was quite larger than in days past today. -When Marisa Ford showed the picture of 6 year old Hadeel, dead and bloody, several grunts were heard.
-WPSD correspondent Lauren Adams became the second person to be removed from the courtroom for using a cellular device. She returned at the next break.
-Marisa Ford objected to Wendelsdorf’s opinionated “you throw enough charges at the jury and hope to get a conviction on one or two.” It was sustained.
-Wendelsdorf complimented the jury, saying he’d never seen a more diligent jury, even taking notes during the closing arguments.

Iraq: "it's like shootin' at ghosts, blindfolded."

2009-05-05T12:09:00.003-05:00

Day 7

The guilty/not guilty phase of USA V Green is complete. The defense finished it's case today with three witnesses: Christopher Barnes, a video deposition of James Gregory, and Justin Watt.

No surprise, Barnes spoke of the area he shared with the defendant in Iraq. "It was rough, like hell, constant sweat and no sleep."
When attorney Pat Bouldin asked what the general thought from soldiers was on Iraqis, again, he paraphrased what had already been said: "they were all in on it... they don't want us here anyway." He talked about the average four hours of sleep soldiers achieved. He spoke of the deaths of superior officers Munger and McKenzie. He said that the deaths of Casica and Nelson and the effects they had on the morale of the troops was by far "the worst, the roughest I've ever seen." He talked about assisting in the search for, and finding pieces of Britt's body. Marisa Ford crossed Barnes, asking his personal thoughts on Green pre-war. "He was really innocent, a really big kid." When questioned about his PTSD, "PTSD ruined my life," Barnes grievously stated.

Waiting on the sidelines, James Gregory "took the stand" next. A video deposition that was filmed on April 25th was shown to the courtroom. Gregory would seem to be the typical just-out-of-the army dude. A big, burly man, with a deep voice and the tattoos to boot. You can't forget the Led Zeppelin shirt either. He, like the rest of the former soldiers, enlisted in the Army and was deployed to Iraq in September of 2005. The effects of PTSD were extremely obvious in Gregory; he looked down and spoke somberly but matter-of-factly, as if being forced to remember something he'd rather forget. He spoke of witnessing Britt and Lopez, among others, walk over and trip an IED, and of how the IED appeared to be designed for a vehicle, not dismounted troops. He appeared upset(as upset as a man like him could be) as he talked about trying to extract Britt's body from the canal it was thrown into. Bouldin asked him what it was like to be in a firefight, to which he replied "well i mean, it's a firefight. You got all this shit flying at you..around you, but you can't see the source." He would later add that "it ain't like you see the Germans and know what they look like and where they are...it's like shootin' at ghosts, blindfolded." He also talked about seeing the company FOB(Forward Operating Base) from TCP1. He talked about not having near enough manpower at the TCPs and his aformentioned PTSD diagnosis. For the cross, Jim Lesousky simply addended that "You knew your limits while you were over there didn't you? You knew not to kill innocent civilians or innocent Iraqis?" "Yes," Gregory replied, before adding "It's something I think about every day."

Next, Justin Watt was called in. Justin was the RTO(radio operator) for 1st platoon. Chris Cooper...errr Darren Wolff, brought in the radio log book which contained all of the events that occurred(or were logged) between February 25th, 2006 to March 28th, 2006. Prior to trial, Watt also prepared a list of abbreviations for the jury to use during deliberation. Wolff and Lesousky(P) both went through a page or two in the log book, having Watt explain various abbreviations and commands and directions.
Lastly, the defense showed a clip from a September 28th, 2008 airing CBS' 60 Minutes, the main point being that before "General O" took command, there were upwards of 100 attacks per week in Iraq, whereas now there are around two per week. In the clip, Barbara Walters asked the incumbent General O if the Triangle of Death was one of the worst parts in Iraq, he said "the worst."

The guilty/not guilty phase is complete. Chief District Judge Thomas B Russell adjourned shortly before noon today, admonishing the jurors of their duties, and announcing that court will reconvene tomorrow, Wednesday, May 6th 2009, to hear closing statements. Expect a guilty/not guilty verdict by Wednesday's end, Thursday at the latest.

Notes: -The fatigue was visible today in the courtroom. The judge, lawyers, jurors, even members of the press(mostly me) were seen yawning at various times.
-The Huffington Post sent Gail Mellor to report on the trial. You may very well find a byline on her story about this trial... we shall see!

"On edge and angry"

2009-05-04T23:16:00.000-05:00

Day 6th

The prosecution concluded their case today. Green appeared a little bit more light hearted during today’s proceedings. Before I forget: yellow button down. He also appeared to have shaved…on Friday, the U.S. Marshall service allegedly refused to give Green his razor for reasons unknown.
The second to last witness for the prosecution was Blake Huggins. Huggins became friends with Green in 2004 after meeting him through Green’s brother Doug. Huggins testified of talking to Green via cell phone, stating that he “seemed really negative… he seemed like he’d been through a lot.” Huggins was by far the most “spacey” witness to have testified thus far. Green reportedly compared what he’d seen to the Michael J Fox/Sean Penn war drama Casualties of War. Huggins said Green did mention the murder/rape to him, occurring in the Triangle of Death. Cross? Nuffin’.
The next witness was Noah Galloway, a former soldier who Green and his fellow soldiers had witness lose an arm and a leg to an IED. At taking the stand, he was spotted giving the defendant a “cheerful smirk,” if you will. Galloway was the radio/telephone operator for Bravo Company(RTO). His relationship began with Green after hearing of his discharge. He stated he wanted to talk to Green about his VA benefits. Green allegedly told him about the crimes but Noah didn’t want to get involved because “it was too soon for me to just jump into something, I was still recovering in Germany.” For the defense, Pat Bouldin took the stage again. He made one big point: during Galloway’s first deployment in ’04, he saw only one death the entire time, but during his second deployment, within a few months, he saw over fifteen(15) die before he himself was injured. He also requested Galloway show his injuries to the jury. “I don’t watch enough Court TV,” he added. At this point, the prosecution’s case concluded.
It was about 11 AM at this time, and there was a bit of legal confusion as to whether or not some of the defenses witnesses would be allowed to testify. Court reconvened at 1:30PM. The defense called Lieutenant Colonel Karen Marrs. She was the psychiatric nurse practioner who examined Green. She testified that Green was “very stressed about the deaths of Casica and Nelson.” Green was exposes to mortars, IEDs, wounded soldiers, and dead soldiers. According to Marrs, Green’s chief complaint was “It’s fucking pointless!” She spoke about his former use of illicit drugs, and his blackouts while drinking. She testified to his speech being “abnormally slow, as was his eye contact.” His mood? “On edge and angry.” She also mentioned his homicidal ideations and that he recognized the consequences of acting on impulses. She would later make the point that ideations do not mean intent to act upon said actions. Wendelsdorf for the defense extracted “soldiers can change over time” out of Marrs.
The defense MAY have one witness tomorrow before resting and moving on to closing statements. Expect a guilty/not guilty verdict by Wednesday, before moving to opening statements.

Mixed Emotions

2009-05-02T23:07:00.002-05:00

Day 5

The prosecution’s case of the guilty/not guilty phase came to a close today. Green’s legal team decided to opt for the “casual Friday” option, giving him a plain-gray button down. Darren Wolff began his cross of now-inmate Barker, noting that Barker was mere acquaintances with Green, whereas he was friends with Cortez. Wolff also brought up how Barker was the go-to-guy for many illicit things, with the former private speaking of getting things such as “gin, whisky, beer, and pills” from an Iraqi officer named Pedro. Wolff attempted to bring in the pornography found in Barker’s inventory, but an objection was sustained.
Asked if alcohol was a coping mechanism while in Iraq, Barker agreed, “It allowed me to escape the everyday stuff…the never ending feeling of danger..” Wolff showed a picture of Barker hugging Casica, “he was a mentor to me,” he remarked. He also spoke of the aforementioned deaths of Lopez and Britt, and of watching Noah Galloway lose an arm and a leg to a trip-wire IED. When asked what this did to him and his fellow troops, he responded, “It diminished us even more than what we already were…it takes your legs out from under you… I felt that I wasn’t gonna live to come home.”
He spoke forlornly about his diagnosed PTSD, speaking of the nightmares, waking up yelling, crying, saying that “reflecting on everything is harder… when movies come on and a soldier’s friend dies in the movie… I feel pain for them and it hurts… it’s something you can’t turn off.” He said that TCP2 was more or less “just an abandoned house with no windows or doors.” Of the daily morning routine IED sweeps, “You walk down the street, and if you don’t get blown up by an IED you’re just lucky.” Wolff asked him if his assumption of being involved with 20 IED attacks was correct. Barker sounded bemused, “that sounds low… you stop counting after a while, it becomes normal.” Asked about his thoughts on Iraqis, “they talk to you and become your friend, and the next day they try to kill you, or they do kill you; anybody had potential to ham you and kill you, woman, child, or man.” He talked about seeing decapitated bodies floating down the river, finding body parts such as torsos with hands tied behind their back, and other… atrocities.
Wolff made a big point in Barker’s admitting that had Cortez have declined to go along with the plan, Barker would’ve done the same. Barker said he feels responsible for the killings: “I shoulda had more sense than that…it was against everything I stood for, it was against how I was raised.” After a long, thoughtful pause, he added “it was.... barbaric in a way.” Like every other co-defendant, Wolff combatively and rhetorically asked Barker, “the government can’t kill you, can they?” After speaking of the details of his 90 year plea deal, Wolff ended on a professional note, wishing “The best of luck to you, Mr. Barker.”
Questioning for the prosecution, James Lesousky brought Paul Cortez to the stand. An unusual occurrence, the court actually forgot to swear in Mr. Cortez, causing the few minutes of completed testimony to have to be redone. Of the crimes, he said he “knew what was goin’ on, we knew we were goin’ down to that house to have sex with that girl, and Barker and Green seemed to know where they were going to get there.” He spoke of throwing the girl to the ground. “I was trying to…… rape her? [pause] after a few seconds…. I couldn’t.” Lesousky asked if he knew Green was going to kill them, he replied “that wasn’t…the intention. Sh…stuff just went crazy…” He talked a little bit about getting sick at the crime scene after being called back to investigate, and of telling the other soldiers to keep this quiet. The cross examination of Cortez lasted 90 seconds, therefore, there’s not much to tell.
Bryan Howard testified next. He, like the rest of his former friends, told his story of the events that occurred on March 12, 2006. He talked about approaching the soldiers as they were playing poker and an “awkward silence” overcoming the table. “Cortez told me….about planning on going to some house and fuckin’ some chick” he would say. A new detail in the storm surrounding this case, Howard spoke of attempting to contact the team via the radio to tell them that there was a line of trucks waiting to be searched at the TCP, even though there were no such trucks. He talked about Cortez trying to keep things on the down low.
“He told us not to bring it up again… if anyone asked… ‘we didn’t know anything.’” He went on to tell of lying in the CID investigation and his dishonorable discharge. For the defense, Pat Bouldin asked Howard if TCP2 was the most dangerous, Howard said “absolutely.”  He also questioned Howard about how he tried to divert the attention away from everyone still in the Army and put the focus on Green.
Another soldier testified, mostly that Green confessed to the killings after asking him if he “could keep a secret.”
Notes: whiskey + energy drinks = bad things happen

People kill people

2009-04-30T22:05:00.003-05:00

Day 4

♫On the fourth day of trial, lawyers gave to Green-- yet another sweater vest, this time red.
For the first segment of today's proceedings, the prosecution called a plethora of FBI agents to the stand, most of which, in my humblest of opinions, didn't have much to say. First was Special Agent Steve Vogt. Vogt has been an FBI agent for 20 years, one of those he spent in Iraq. He testified that a month after arriving in Iraq, he was contacted for assistance in finding the AK47 that was allegedly used in the crimes. He spoke of using SONAR imaging equipment to search for the missing weapon. Pictures of the dive operation were examined and presented to the jury. He was also questioned about the inability to exhume the bodies of the victims.
For the defense, Bouldin pointed out the number of soldiers required to make the area safe for the dive.
Next up was Special Agent Christopher Lando. Lando was an agent in the Asheville, NC area at the times of Green's arrest. He said he was informed of Green's presence in the area and organized his arrest on the same day. After being arrested, Green allegedly commented to Lando that he "wished [the FBI] would've called, because [Green] would've just turned himself in." When asked if he wanted his grandmother to know the story, Green reportedly agreed before having a change of heart, saying "No no, I don't want to upset her." He was allowed to have "a cigarette or two" before being taken away in a police car. Wendelsdorf(D) deftly made light that it was a routine arrest for Lando, and that Green did not resist arrest at all.


Darren Wolff = Chris Cooper?
Special Agent Stewart Kelly was brought in, mostly to testify as to what Green had told him. According to Kelly, Green said things such as "You probably think I'm a monster," and "I knew you guys were coming," as well as "looks like I'll be spending the rest of my life in prison." He said that Green questioned on whether or not he would be tried in Federal or military court. Wendelsdorf once again pointed out that Green didn't resist, also that Green had returned to NC from one of his former Sergeant's funeral. Green allegedly said he knew that the FBI was coming and "wanted to enjoy his last minutes of freedom."
After the mid-morning break, the first of Green's co-defendants was called to the stand. Jesse V. Spielman appeared, wearing the typical "orange jumpsuit" worn by inmates. He told the jury how he asked to be placed in infantry because he "wanted to fight for his country." He also repeated things already mentioned in other testimonies such as Bravo Company's mission, and the length of stays at TCP2. He spoke of the aforementioned drinking and card games on March 12, 2006. He said he saw Spc. Barker and Pfc. Green talking, who "looked like they were having a private conversation." He said they went inside and started changing into all-black clothes which they called "ninja suits." He went on to describe Barker cutting through a fence with a Gerber multi-tool(which was exhibited to the jury). When Marisa Ford asked Spielman what he thought they were going to do, he hesitated before acknowledging that "heading out and roughing people up wasn't that uncommon so I figured we were going to a residence to rough people up." It was stipulated that Green did not participate in any other incident involving "roughing up" of Iraqis.

After the lunch recess, Spielman described entering the house and keeping watch while Barker and Cortez separated 14-year-old Abeer from her family. He agreed to hearing three gunshots and that, after asking Green if everything was okay, Green replied "everything's fine", before letting him see the bodies of Qasim, Fakrhiya, and Hadeel. He said he knew they were dead because there was "blood scattered on the wall & part of the father's cranium was missing." Accordingly, Spielman walked out of that room and witnessed the rape of Abeer. The prosecution lent the model of the Al-Janabi house to Spielman for better clarification of the events and how they happened. When an M14 shotgun was brought out for demonstrative purposes, the court enjoyed a moment of humor as Marisa Ford, holding the weapon, declared "Judge, these have all been rendered safe but since I clearly have no clue what I'm doing," "and you're pointing it at me," (D)Wendelsdorf added. Spielman was confused, "I didn't really know what to do," he said, "It was an unsafe area and three out of my four squad members were involved so I couldn't leave and run back to TCP2." He testified to seeing Green unbuttoning his pants and getting down between Abeer's legs and raping her, after which he took a pillow and put it over Abeer's head and fired an AK47 into the pillow, killing her. At this, the defendant was spotted looking down. He then watched Barker pour a liquid onto her body. While her body was burning, he added clothes and blankets to fuel the flames, "to destroy evidence," he said.
He continued, describing Cortez & Barker washing their chests and genitalia back at TCP2, and how he himself threw the AK47 into the canal. When asked why he didn't turn his squad members in, he "didn't feel right, telling on people [he] served with." He was also fearful of retaliation from his fellow troops.
On cross, it was easy to see Spielman recalling the events past. Wendelsdorf pinned him down to "hoping for a recommendation from parole board for giving truthful testimony in all cases involved." A picture of Spielman after graduation from boot camp was shown. Asked on his thoughts about heading to Iraq at that time, he "was looking forward to going over there. I was enthusiastic."
According to Spielman, Casica & Nelson were very friendly and courteous to Iraqis, often giving candy and school supplies to Iraqi children. Wendelsdorf questioned if anything changed his view of them. Spielman told of how he witnessed one of Casica's informants approach them at TCP2, shaking Casica's hand before drawing a revolver and shooting Casica and Nelson. Spielman gunned down the informant, saying that "It was devastating to me. Stories of kids, women, elders, really anyone could be an insurgent..." Asked if this event changed Green's view of Iraqis, he wholeheartedly agreed. "Yes, it changed everybody's view." The next subject was the explosive death of their superiors, Britt & Lopez. "It literally blew Lopez in half, and killed Britt too." Wendelsdorf reminded him that he had found Britt's jaw lying on the ground, to which he conversed "It's something you can't describe... they're alive and talking to you minutes before, then minutes later you're picking up their body parts."
The next point from the defense was the burning of the soldier's Forward Operating Base. All the soldiers lost their homely items. Letters, family pictures, programs from the memorial services of Casica and Nelson, and even laptops were lost. While soldiers were reimbursed for ~80% of the value of their material items lost, he said it was the niceties from home that mattered the most. He stated that Sgt. Fenalson was very adamant about shaking Iraqi hands. At this, Spielman said "I wasn't about to follow his advice and shake people's hands," implying the deaths of Casica & Nelson. "Fenalson cared more 'bout the Iraqis than he did us." His testimony ended there.

Spc. James Barker was brought to the stand next. I noted that every military witness, and the defendant, all showed their militaristic style, standing at attention when the "all rise," call came from the U.S. Marshalls. Barker said that on the day of the killings, they were playing poker and talking, mostly "bullshit at first, then Green turned the conversation to killing Iraqis." Barker admitted that he was the one who brought up the Al-Janabi house, having seen the house and family on a recent patrol; he also admitted that he first implied raping the girl to Green.
According to Barker, "Cortez took a little convincing to get him to come along. He said if we were gonna have sex with the girl, he wanted to go first." He testified to ushering the 5-year-old girl and father into the house, and then separating 14-year-old Abeer from her family. He said that he held Abeer's hands down while Cortez raped her in mere seconds, while Green shot the remaining three family members. When Cortez was finished, they switched places, with Abeer screaming and crying the entire time. Afterwards, Green raped her, and then shot her.

Trial adjourned early. Barker will be crossed tomorrow, expect Sgt. Casica to play a semi-significant role.

Sustainability

2009-04-30T01:18:00.005-05:00

Day 3

The cross of Colonel Kunk got a little more exciting today. Green opted out of the sweater vest and in with a light blue button down(why am I writing about court fashion style?). During the cross, Darren Wolff once again had conflicts with Kunk. Questioned over the burning of the soldier’s FOB(forward operating base), Kunk testified that the soldiers “lost some of their personal property,” with Wolff trying to assert the morale downturn the soldiers would have had after losing their “homely” items. Wolff forced Kunk into agreeing that he did put all involved soldiers in the same place(TCP2) on March 12th. Kunk skillfully evaded saying what Wolff was trying to extrude from him(a la “maybe if I hadn’t put the soldiers there, it wouldn’t have happened”). Wolff then used the technology in the room to diagram the bases(touch screens with projectors, the drawings and exhibits being show to the jury). A re-make of said diagram shown here:

When confronted about his testimony in the other soldier’s Article 32s(courts marshal), Kunk consented to the fact that he had stated that Cortez, Spielman, and Green were all “wallowing in [their] self pity.” Green perked up at this segway in the back-and-forth. Down the hypothetical “road” a ways, proceedings stalled again when Wolff inquired as to whether or not Kunk had identified Green as having combat stress issues. “No I did not,” he denied. In his previous testimony, Kunk stated he had(plot thickens).
Kunk spoke of the time he counseled  to Green about his officer’s deaths and the grief that came with it. He spoke of asking Green if he thought “all Iraqis were bad,” to which Green reportedly responded “no not all off the Iraqis are bad.” Kunk said he questioned Green about his meaning of “not all,” and that Green spoke of how frustrating it was to “not be able to tell who was an insurgent and who wasn’t.” One of the larger points in today’s events, Kunk admitted that Colonel Ebel, himself, and Captain Goodwin all knew that Green was having “violent tendencies towards Iraqis and wanted to kill them.”
Next, [former] Sgt. Anthony Yribe(“ya-ree-bay”) testified for the prosecution. Upon entry, Yribe nodded to his former soldier and friend across the courtroom(Green). The then-Sergeant was charged with derelict of duty and falsifying information to a superior officer; once brought to trial, Yribe signed a plea agreement allowing him out of the Army on an “other than honorable” discharge, in addition to truthful testimony in his co-defendant’s cases, obviously including this one.
Yribe spoke of his supervision of four soldiers, and of operations at the various TCPs, stating that TCP life consisted of “primarily guard duty.” He talked about his teamwork with defendant Green in rushing the bodies of Sgt. Nelson and SSgt. Casica back to medical facilities in hopes of saving their lives. Personally, I noticed the militaristic style that Yribe exhibited. Except when directed to explain further, all of Yribe’s answers consisted of short, curt replies of “yes” or “no.” Perhaps not a surprise but more of a formality, his direct examination with Prosecuting Attorney James Lesousky seemed oddly rehearsed at times.
He was questioned on the whereabouts of the bodies upon being called to examine the crime scene. The prosecution unveiled a to-scale model of the Al-Janabi house to assist Yribe with this, murmuring about being “careful” because it “cost a lot of money.”[Note: In general terms, the “United States” has spent or is spending anywhere from $4 to $6 million dollars in prosecuting and vying for the death penalty for Green…there’s your tax dollars at work, America]
Next were pictures that the former Sgt. Took of the crime scene upon his arrival. Skipping over the menial details… Exhibit 7D, a picture of Qassim Hamza Rasheed dead, laying face down on the floor with brain matter scattered in.. multiple places around him… caused several visible and audible grimaces within the crowd, with Green looking down but eyeing the jury. After pictures of all bodies were shown, Green was seen rubbing his eyes/forehead.
Yribe spoke of Green’s “confession” to the crimes, and of Specialist James Barker’s hearing the confession but saying nothing, something that the Defense would later play upon. As he spoke of his realization that Spc. Green was telling the truth, Def. Green anxiously bit his nails.
When attorneys asked Yribe why he didn’t turn Green in, Yribe murmured, “It was kind of….out of sight out of mind? I didn’t understand the gravity of the situation.”
During his cross-examination, Yribe was, for the most part, accepting and cooperative. As previously mentioned, Yribe was questioned on Barker’s presence during Green’s “confession” to the murder. The defense made light of Green’s confessing that he and he alone did the murders, with Barker saying nothing and confessing to nothing, even though he had every opportunity to do so. Scott Wendelsdorf(D)  pondered, “Is it true that if Green had said nothing to you, these crimes would have gone unsolved?” to which Yribe confirmed. Wendelsdorf also pointed out that the only lie Pfc. Green told was that he was the only one who committed the crimes, while Barker “stood there, cool as a cucumber.”
When the cross showed pictures of Casica & Nelson’s assailant/murderer(gory…more brains), Yribe stated that what [we in the court] were seeing was “not that bad.” He testified that the deaths of Casica, Nelson, Britt, and Lopez would have “absolutely affected the morale of the troops.” Defense attorneys asked how long a soldier could live in the conditions that the five soldiers involved were living in, before succumbing to fatigue and sleep deprivation. “3 to 4 days,” Yribe answered, “I mean it’s 120º out there, it’s kind of hard to sleep.” Regarding the morning IED searches, Yribe sadly intoned “you get used to the fact that you’re gonna die, you become numb, fatalistic.” The cross inquired: When asked how you could tell if someone was a good guy or a bad guy, Yribe flatly stated “You couldn’t.” “This war didn’t break you did it?” “No.” “Do you know people it has broken?” A curt, definitive “yes.” “Destroyed…?” “Yes.”

On that note I’m going to end this particular blog post. It’s 1 AM. Yes, some CID agent named Terry testified for nearly three hours. But whereas Yribe testified for two and I got seven pages of notes out of him, Terry testified for three hours and I only got half of a page. Minus a legal squabble over a shell casing, the only “important” thing was that an investigation occurred.
Notes: -Many objections today, and much sustainment, causing one Attorney Wendelsdorf much frustration, albeit I think he tried to hide it.
-For those not living in Paducah and unable to see for themselves, the NSA allegedly had watch over the court house for a month prior to the trial’s beginning for fear of bombs/retaliation. Even as the court proceeds, police officers are stationed on three street corners outside the front door of the courthouse.
-Expect the blogs to decrease in size—I, being an almost graduated high school student, must maintain grades so that I can indeed graduate, therefore I won’t be at the courthouse all day everyday as I have been. Don’t worry, I won’t miss anything important, therefore you won’t either. Keep spreadin’ the word, folks!

"War is Stress"

2009-04-28T23:10:00.002-05:00

Day 2
Today began with the cross-examination of Colonel Todd Ebel. Although Green chose the darker grey sweater vest, he appeared to be in a lighter mood, at times smiling and conversing with his lawyers. In fact, the entire court came across as more courteous, if at times getting semi-quarrelsome. Defense Attorney Darren Wolff was very cordial in his cross of Col. Ebel. Even when he seemed to reach a brick wall in questioning Ebel if he’d ever fired his weapon in combat (he didn’t), he showcased a calm, professional style, asking Ebel not to “dumb down” what he was saying, but to instead translate his “military speak into civilian speak” for the jury. Laughs were heard from all parties present in the courtroom when Ebel was questioned about the structure of the military ranking system, “Well, I outranked the highest commanding officer over there, but I’d never tell him what to do.” Wolff spent most of his cross pointing out faults in the Colonel’s leadership. Ebel agreed that he had sat down for 30 minutes to speak with Defendant Green after the deaths of his commanding officers Casica and Nelson. A minor breaking point was reached when Wolff finagled the Colonel into admitting that he could not recall any other incident where he had sat down with a soldier for any amount of time after the deaths of said soldier’s superiors. The next witness called was Colonel Thomas G. Kunk (how ‘bout that for a last name!). Kunk was a Lieutenant Colonel under Ebel with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, and was Battalion Commander of the 1st Battalion, commanding around 1100 soldiers during the tour of duty in question (Col. Ebel commanded ~7500 troops). Prosecuting Attorney Marisa Ford questioned Kunk about his background in the military, as well as [obviously] his service in Iraq. Kunk explained how he played a major organizational roll in the training of the Iraqi Army back in 2006, and how he used various platoons to help train the Iraqi soldiers. He discussed the tasks of his battalion, with Ford extruding details about Bravo Company’s specific mission. According to Kunk, Bravo company’s mission was to A) disrupt enemy missions, B) bring security and stability to the Mahmuhdiya region, and C) to train the Iraqi security. More specifically, he spoke of the platoons stationed at J. C. Bridge, and their respective goal of preventing any force from traversing the bridge, east or west. He spoke of his unsettling feelings upon his arrival at the bridge, saying that “8 men at the western end of the bridge… that did not sit well with me.” Furthermore, Kunk spoke of rebuilding the Iraqi infrastructure: protecting a water treatment facility while living there, and how his soldiers began working on infiltrating or engaging lands where U.S. soldiers previously hadn’t been able to go by way of earning the Iraqi people’s trust. “Some would say you gotta win people’s hearts or minds, well, I think that to win people’s hearts and minds, you first have to earn their trust and their confidence.” Though proceedings appeared to be more formal and in motion today, and even though both sides of the trial were quite courteous and helpful to each other, when objections were called, things appeared to get heated, with both sides exhibiting more rambunctious hand motions and snippy whispers, appearing to have mini-tantrums in trying to get what they wanted from Judge Russell. Next, he was questioned on the deaths of Specialist Lopez and Lieutenant Britt; they had completed a search for, and found, 15 IEDs when they spotted yet another IED which exploded when they traversed a canal to inspect the bomb. Kunk said he questioned those soldiers who knew the superior officers to insure their health and mental stability. He testified that the deaths “didn’t just hurt the 8 soldiers in the squad, or the 30 in the platoon, or the ~130 in the company, it hurts us ALL.” When asked if he spoke with then Pfc. Green about the deaths, Kunk evasively replied, “It’s possible.” [Defendant] Green perked up at his answer. The Colonel attempted to showcase his… for lack of a better word, manliness, at times seeming exaggerated or, in all honesty, even forged (that’s just my take). After being injured on/around March 8th by an IED while traveling in an M1151 (pictured below)
An M1151 -> A common humvee
Kunk refused a medivac to the nearest hospital, saying, “If you go out by medivac, sometimes you don’t come back…I wasn’t leaving my men… not to be cavalier.” A major point of interest in the trial, Kunk brought in controversial new testimony regarding the hearsay surrounding the March 12 slayings: the Colonel asked lesser officers that reported to the scene if any rumors were circulating about who committed the crimes. Kunk testified that officers only told him “the insurgents…some kind of sectarian violence.” Again with the fabrication, the witness stated, “something about that just diiiidn’t sound right to me.” This caused several murmurs in the crowd, specifically within the press section. Kunk has never mentioned any of this in any of his previous testimonies regarding the Mahmudiya killings. Kunk continued, speaking of his recommendation for the discharge of Green, and of his notification regarding the killings and that they “might have been committed by U.S. soldiers.” After being informed, Kunk called his superiors until all proper parties had been informed, “I either had to prove it or disprove it.” Even on cross, Kunk was all encompassing in his tales of wartime. He told of Bravo Company’s attempts to get schools back in order, to get medical services up and running, and running water, “things we take for granted here in the U.S.,” Kunk added. Darren Wolff returned once again for cross. A big issue was made of how “engaged” Kunk and his respective peons were, and what they thought of each soldier’s ability to “choose to do the harder right than the easier wrong.” When asked what he meant by this, Kunk gave an explanation to the amount of “choosing the harder right by retaliating against true enemies, as opposed to the easier wrong by killing innocent Iraqis.” The next topic was Captain John Goodwin. Kunk stated, “It was reported to me that Cap’n Goodwin had a ‘thousand yard stare’ and looked lethargic.” Wolff pinned Kunk down in forcing him to admit that when Kunk asked Goodwin to list where his soldiers were located, Goodwin was unable to do so, thus making Goodwin “not an engaged leader” as was previously stated. In response to this, Kunk stated that he recommended a 3-day leave of absence for Goodwin because, “If you can’t do the small things right… when it’s tough, you won’t be able to do the complicated things.” The last point military lawyer and defense attorney Darren Wolff made regarded the TCPs. Wolff was once again extremely professional in his actions and questioning. He was quick in bringing the differences between TCP 1 and TCP 2 to light (note: Kunk had stayed overnight in TCP1, and Def. Green was located at TCP2). Whereas TCP1 had at least 10 Iraqis and 8 U.S. soldiers on hand at all times, TCP2, the check point where Green and his fellow convicts were stationed, had a mere six U.S. soldiers. While TCP1 had sandbag barriers surrounding the checkpoint, working electricity, and a bathroom, TCP2 had none of these. Kunk, his egotistical side showing, proudly proclaimed “Sometimes I slept in the litter because I gave the cots in the TCP to my soldiers.”(Note: a litter is a stretcher used for bodies) In the end Kunk admitted, “We were asking an awful lot of our men… war is stress.” Other notes of today’s trial:
-The Press Section was asked twice today to be quiet during the objections while both prosecution/defense were at Judge Russell’s desk.
-A co-defendant's attorney, name witheld, present in court every day thus far, was escorted out of the courtroom after being found using a cell phone.

How We Got Here

2009-04-27T22:45:00.008-05:00

Day 1
(Preface: I have been writing this kind of story for newspapers for my entire[albeit quite short] journalistic life. Making the sudden change to blog style posting has been a combination of interesting, difficult, and innundating. I'll be refining the style with which I write these.)
Proceedings began today. Defendant Steven Green entered the courtroom appearing in a champagne sweater vest, seeming jaunty and aware in light of his situation. Federal District Judge Thomas B. Russell was thorough in his swearing in of the jury. A minute Southern drawl making it’s way into his voice, Russell made sure to instruct the jury to not discuss any of the proceedings outside of the court, also noting that they should “change the channel” should they hear anything about the case via television or radio.
Prosecuting attorney Brian Skaret, tall and gangly in stature, was very clear in his depiction of Green’s crime of heinous gang rape/murder: “While most of you were probably here at home in the USA, enjoying a sunny day, getting used to the warming weather, some of you were probably anticipating the upcoming March Madness tournament…on the other side of the world, in Iraq, five soldiers, five thugs, were terrorizing a harmless family.” Skaret told of Abeer Al-Janabi’s rape and murder, how she was “violated and dishonored three times, then mercilessly shot.” He was accurate in playing the role of the prosecution, projecting a cold image onto the Green canvas. “Who could’ve done this,” Skaret asked rhetorically. “Not terrorists, not insurgents, but by the Army. In cold blood, then Pfc. Green orphaned two young sons.”
Each individual jury member had their own personal screen for viewing the various diagrams and exhibits. During the prosecution opening, the faces of Green and his former fellow troops were shown. Skaret projected the squad (excuse my misuse of military terms) having a regular day, playing card games, drinking Iraqi whiskey, until they began talking about the house they’d seen on patrol. Green was seemingly anxious at this point, one hand on his forehead and the other appearing to be writing notes. Skaret, sorrow ebbing in his voice, told the court of Abeer’s shooting death. He reminded the jury that “this isn’t television, this isn’t CSI or Law & Order,” also that “[some of] these witnesses are no angels, they hope by testifying in this trial to someday make parole…evaluate their testimony very carefully… it’s not about the lawyers, or the 20 page questionnaires. It’s not about the bumper sticker on the back of your car.”
Skaret told of the witnesses whom he and his team would call: witnesses who testified today include orphaned child Muhhamed Al-Janabi, Marti Al-Janabi or “Abu Farras,” uncle of the orphaned twins, Ahkmed (spelling?), a medic who reported to the crime scene, and took photos of the bodies, a Dr. who filled out the death certificates, and Colonel Todd J. Ebel, the commanding Brigadier General who was in place during defendant Green’s tour in Iraq.
While the prosecution’s opening largely focused on March 12, 2006 and the events therein, the defense’ opening focused on the events leading up to the day of the atrocity. Public defender Pat Bouldin told of the “most tragic of circumstances,” which culminated in the March 12 massacre. He also openly admitted that, “what [Atty. Brian Skaret] said the truth. I want that said at the onset of this.” He spoke of the deaths of many soldiers platoon that the soldiers were in. Also showcased was a video of the memorial service of SGG/SGTs Travis Nelson and Kenith Casica. Via a PowerPoint presentation, Bouldin presented to the court pictures of every day Iraqis and (perhaps rhetorically) asked if he himself or anyone in the court could say as to whether or not the man pictured was an insurgent, hinting at the defense his team plans to use. He spoke of Ctc Kunk being quoted as stating that the combat had made the squad of soldiers “mission incapable,” and recommended that the 1st Platoon be disbanded. Also mentioned was the burning of the soldier’s home base, which housed their belongings from home, the lack of supervision during the soldier’s stay at their traffic checkpoint. The defense is trying to explain that the soldiers became numb and accustomed to the violence around them, and that, over time, the soldiers were no longer able to tell civilian Iraqis apart, friend or foe.
The first witness called, Muhhamed Al-Janabi, was questioned on mostly background information, before leading up to the day of the crime. When asked what he saw upon entering his house after seeing smoke outside, he said flatly “I saw lots of flesh, and my father’s brains scattered against the wall,” eliciting some grunts and shudders from the “crowd”. I noticed defendant Green perking up to take a look at Muhhamed, a point of interest. Next was “Abu-Farras,” the uncle. He spoke of his job at the Ministry of Health, and his fourteen years in the military. He is 50 years old and he is in the United States for 14 days. This is his first time outside of Iraq, ever.
Farras spoke of his arrival to the scene on the day of, and scornfully of the soldiers who spoke to him while he was present. He told of how one of the soldiers said “look what the terrorists are doing!” At first, Abu-Farras wasn’t going to come to testify. “Even terrorists wouldn’t do that! I looked up to and respected the Army.” Abu told of how he became very distrustful of Americans, and how, after being asked to testify, he felt that “they [the Americans] would take me there [to the States] and do the same to me.” He obviously changed his mind, stating that he realized “not all Americans are bad, lots of them are good people.”
The medic, “Ahkmed,” was used mostly to illustrate the crime scene and the bodies, with pictures of the bodies being shown (more grunts and discomfort from the people in the courtroom). He spoke of how he covered Abeer’s body even after her burning death, “because I wanted to protect her honor, [even] while she was dead.” Again, the prosecution repeated it’s main point: when asked if he ever thought the US would be responsible, the medic sternly spoke, “No. I didn’t ever suspect the forces which came to protect us would be the ones responsible.” There was a small cross examination regarding whether or not the medic saw a soldier pick up a shell casing, but was menial in the end…
The doctor who examined the bodies for issuing the death certificates testified, again adding to the gory scene of the crime: “I saw that, on the father, all the brain was … out.”
Next to testify was Colonel Todd Ebel who spoke of his 27 years in the Army, including three tours in Iraq. Ebel was effervescent in his descriptions, at times seeming extremely sure of himself, and very informed as to what the court wanted to hear and what they did not. He spoke of how his leadership over the soldiers(including Green and his cohorts) led to the finding of more than 2200 IEDs(Improvised Explosive Devices--home made bombs), more than any other battalion. When asked about his confiding with Green after the deaths of Sergeants Nelson and Casica, Ebel noted “you could determine that he was making gross generalizations about ALL Iraqi’s,” but also noting that feelings of frustration were common after the death(s) of a fellow troop, “It’s like losing a family member, it’s an unfriendly event. We lose friends, family, teammates.”
Other things of note:
-The interpreter present at this trial is reportedly the same interpreter used for Saddam Hussein's trial. She was only present in the courtroom when needed.
-Known media presence at this time included the Associated Press, Reuters, local NBC affiliate WPSDTV, TIME Magazine, the Courier-Journal, and the French Press Agency.

A Total Lapse of Humanity

2009-04-24T15:31:00.003-05:00

A soldier who fought in Iraq is being brought to trial on rape and murder charges in our city. In what has been called a “total lapse of humanity,” the soldier could potentially face the death penalty in his trial which begins April 27 at the Federal District Courthouse in downtown Paducah.
On March 12, 2006, five soldiers from Kentucky’s own Fort Campbell-based 101st Airborne Division stormed the farmhouse of the Qasim family in Mahmudiya, Iraq. Upon finding the family of four, Private First Class Steven Green and the other soldiers ordered three of the four family members into a room, where Green proceeded to shoot all three in the head. He emerged from the room, allegedly announcing “I just killed them, all are dead.” Soldiers then restrained 14-year old Abeer Qasim Hamza while Green and another private took turns raping her. After the rape, Pfc. Green shot and killed Abeer, and with assistance from his fellow troops, burned the lower half of her body.
As of this writing, all soldiers involved, except Pfc. Green, have been either indicted, charged, convicted, sentenced, and imprisoned. Specialist James Barker was sentenced to 90 years in prison, but will be eligible for parole in 20. Sergeant Paul E. Cortez pleaded guilty to rape, and four counts of murder. He was sentenced to 100 years, and will be eligible for parole in 10 years. Pfc. Jesse Spielman was given 110 years in prison, eligible for parole in 10. Pfc. Bryan Howard was sentenced to 27 months in prison for being an accessory (not reporting the crime).
Private First Class Stephen Dale Green is the only soldier who hasn’t been sentenced. He has been indicted on, and plead not guilty to, charges of murder and sexual assault. But because Green was arrested after his discharge, and after his return to the United States, the trial cannot be held via court martial as the other soldier’s trials were. He is to be tried in Federal Court, and due to the Paducah courthouse being the closest one to Fort Campbell, he will be tried at the courthouse in downtown Paducah under Judge Thomas Russell.
His one of a kind case is to be tried on April 27 at the Federal Court in downtown Paducah. This will be the first court case ever in which the government will try to sentence a soldier to the death penalty for offenses committed during wartime while overseas.  Green’s lawyers have submitted motions declaring that Green’s defense will be to put the Army itself on trial for allowing Green to become a soldier. Prior to enlisting, Green had spent four days in jail for a minor in possession of alcohol ticket. Normally, the Army doesn’t allow applicants with a criminal history, but for Green, they accepted him via a legal form, which allowed them to waive his prior history. Not only this, but Green told military psychiatrists prior-to the incident that he felt anger and wanted to kill Iraqis. The psyche gave Green a drug for bi-polar disorder and released him, but failed to engineer a “safe plan,” as required, to keep Green away from Iraq civilians.
Due to the unique factors and controversy surrounding the case, there will no doubt be much spotlight in, on, and around Paducah from the national media syndicate. The trial begins Monday April 27.