Soldier Testifies Iraqi Was Cooperating

[shawn703]

An unarmed Iraqi cooperated with American troops searching his house and said "USA good" minutes before he was shot to death, a former U.S. soldier testified Wednesday at his one-time squad leader's murder trial.

Jason Pizer testified that the Iraqi was alive with Army Staff Sgt. Shane Werst when Pizer went to a translator to check the Iraqi's identification against a list of suspected insurgents.

Pizer said he radioed back to Werst to confirm the man was on the list. He said he then heard Werst say, "Expecting contact," and then the sound of gunfire. Pizer said he returned to the house and found Naser Ismail's body on the floor.

Werst, 32, is on trial on charges of premeditated murder and obstruction of justice in the January 2004 slaying of Ismail, which prosecutors say was in retaliation for a mortar attack that killed an Army captain earlier that day.

more...
http://www.journal-news.com/news/content/shared-gen/ap/National/Soldier_Murder_Trial.html



Updated to provide better link

[benburch]

1. URL broken. Use TinyUrl.com nt

[Roland99]

2. Here's a Washington Post link

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/25/AR2005052501358.html

[meganmonkey]

3. Well, looks like we have a whole damn tree full of bad apples

This is just bad. Bad bad bad bad bad :(

[Moderator]

4. kick to combine

[Judi Lynn]

5. Soldier says squad leader told him to lie about death

May 26, 2005, 12:44AM

Soldier says squad leader told him to lie about death
He testifies that sergeant charged in Iraqi's slaying urged him to back self-defense claim
By JOHN W. GONZALEZ
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

FORT HOOD, TEXAS - Minutes after fatally shooting an unarmed and cooperative Iraqi civilian, an Army squad leader urged a fellow soldier to falsely declare that the killing was in self-defense, court-martial witnesses said Wednesday.
Spc. Charles Pannell, who complied by initially misleading investigators, was recommended by the squad leader for an Army commendation medal, but the concocted story unraveled and the request for the combat valor award was withdrawn, testimony showed.
(snip)

Military prosecutors contend Werst was distraught that his company commander had been killed the previous day in a mortar attack. They contend he discarded standard operating procedures on Jan. 3, 2004, when his squad detained Ismail because he was on a list of "high value targets" suspected of aiding the insurgency.

Rather than send the man to a nearby detainee collection point, Ismail was taken into his home, beaten and shot to death, said the lone eyewitness to the shooting, Pfc. Nathan Stewart. Stewart testified he joined in the beating and watched as Werst fired multiple rounds into Ismail.

One of Ismail's last statements to soldiers was "USA good!" said another squad member, Sgt. Jason Pizer.

Pannell said as he and Werst were walking away from the house, Werst laid out the scenario to tell others. "He said, 'Me and you were in the house and the guy had a gun,' " Pannell testified.
(snip/...)

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3198729
(Free registration is required)

[KayLaw]

6. USA good

Once we were.

:cry:

[Mika]

17. When was that?

When it was clearing this land of native "insurgents", or during the continuing occupation?

[Straight Shooter]

19. When we still had the wool pulled over our eyes.

Many Americans were better, long ago, for what was in their hearts. But America was never good, if you're referring to the Powers That Be. It was all an illusion. x(

[magellan]

7. "USA good!"

I just can't bear the injustice we unleashed on these people anymore.

:cry:

[annabanana]

8. Amnesty International is trying to tell us

what we already know. How can so many Americans think this is "just the way it has to be"

[leesa]

16. How? They are selfish, lazy and greedy. Many Americans think it's

perfectly alright to invade countries to steal their oil and other resources because we need it. It's the American Christian way.

[Pinboy]

9. Soldier Testifies Iraqi Was Cooperating (AP)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050526/ap_on_re_us/soldier_murder_trial

Soldier Testifies Iraqi Was Cooperating

By ANGELA K. BROWN, Associated Press Writer Wed May 25,11:05 PM ET

FORT HOOD, Texas - An unarmed Iraqi cooperated with American troops searching his house and said "USA good" minutes before he was shot to death, a former U.S. soldier testified Wednesday at his one-time squad leader's murder trial.

Jason Pizer testified that the Iraqi was alive with Army Staff Sgt. Shane Werst when Pizer went to a translator to check the Iraqi's identification against a list of suspected insurgents.

Pizer said he radioed back to Werst to confirm the man was on the list. He said he then heard Werst say, "Expecting contact," and then the sound of gunfire. Pizer said he returned to the house and found Naser Ismail's body on the floor.
<snip>

Stewart testified Tuesday that Werst became enraged and repeatedly shot Ismail because he thought the man had lied about his identity. After the shooting, Stewart said, Werst pulled out a non-U.S. military gun, fired it at a wall and told Stewart to get the Iraqi's fingerprints on the weapon. Werst later reported Ismail had fired first.

[jamesinca]

10. bring it on

winning hearts and minds
major combat is over
they hate us for our freedoms
your either with us or against us
this war was not about oil,it was about regime change and WMD
freedom fries

and all of those other stupid things that have happened since March of '03 add this one to the list.

[0007]

11. What will this soldier killer get? 90 days

....and we wonder why the U.S. is the most hated nation on earth these days.

[Warren Stupidity]

13. reich wing hate radio

will laud the hero for his bravery

[Dhalgren]

23. He won't get anything - he was acquitted. Excuse me while I...

Aaaaaarrrrrrgggggghhhhh!!!!!!! Thank you.

[truthisfreedom]

12. sounds like AP is next on scott's list of media organizations to pressure.

good luck, scotty. once AP starts tellling the truth, you're toast.

[Cooley Hurd]

14. 'Deadwood' justice in Iraq...

Would it have been impossible for Sgt Werst (ooh what an ironic name) to handcuff the translator and take him into custody, instead of gunning him down without even so much as a trial?

Sgt Werst has a future as clock tower sniper...:scared:

[MisterP]

21. the brutallest concentration camp guard was known as "Tom Mix"

after the cowboy: however, the legend of the dangerous swarthy man in a "combat situation" will join the great pantheon of lies, along with murderous Kent State protesters, media losing Vietnam, Dan Rather, Iraqi 9-11 hijackers, and other pablum for the s---brained

[wildwww2]

15. Guys like Werst come back to the states and kill civilians here too.

I knew Bu$h`s war crime was good for something. Increasing the number of veteran lunatics that will eventually end up on the streets here in the USA. Stolen election 2000 is the base cause of this. And anyone with any ability to really search their feelings can tell it.
Peace
Wildman
Al Gore is My President

[saigon68]

18. These Thugs and Hoodlums can't wait to get back to the ZI

When they can further take out revenge on the now developing Anti-War Movement


Can you remember Kent State?

Right Wing Hate Radio is presenting this Criminal as a Patriot.

(He was only killing RagHeads) </Sarcasm>

[rainbow4321]

20. Sgt.: No Regret in Shooting Unarmed Iraqi

http://www.baytownsun.com/wire.lasso?report=/dynamic/stories/S/SOLDIER_MURDER_TRIAL

An Army staff sergeant on trial for murder testified Thursday that he doesn't regret gunning down an unarmed Iraqi to save a fellow soldier, but admitted his attempts to make the slaying look like self-defense were wrong.

"I would still to this day fire on that man, sir," Staff Sgt. Shane Werst said shortly before the defense rested in his murder and obstruction of justice trial.

After shooting Ismail, Werst said he quickly fired the Iraqi's pistol into a couch and told the other soldier, Pfc. Nathan Stewart, to put the man's fingerprints on it.

Werst said he was scared afterward because he had never shot anyone before, and that Stewart also was "freaking out." He said he should not have tried to make the shooting look like self-defense.

[Dhalgren]

22. Aaawwwe, he's admits he was wrong.

Not about the murder, just about trying to make it look like "self-defense". He should have known that murdering an Iraqi isn't a crime, but obstructing justice - boy that's a real crime! :silly:

[Miss Chybil]

26. F'n pig. nt

[speedingbullet]

24. Prosecution of Marines and Soldiers

This quagmire is leading to all sorts of bad results. I have worked on both sides of the civilian criminal justice system as a prosecutor and as defense counsel. Criminal trials often bring results that defy public perception. The standard answer is that the jury heard the evidence and accepted the prosecutions case or it didn't. The news reports don't tell the whole story. Was justice done in this case? Maybe, maybe not.

To me the larger issue is the demonizing of our service people. I have a problem laying all the fault on our front line soldiers, sailors and marines. I still believe that the vast majority of these young people joined with good intentions. They are now in a bad situation and are more concerned with trying to live to see the next day than with the larger philosophic issues. Our government has put them into this awful position where they must make immediate life or death decisions. It's the people at the top who ought to be on trial.

[newyawker99]

25. Hi speedingbullet!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[speedingbullet]

27. Thanks newyawker99

Thanks for the welcome.