SlagleRock's Slaughterhouse
Don't be a fool and die for your country. Let the other sonofabitch die for his.
-- General George S. Patton

April 29, 2005

American Service Member Sentenced To Death

According to the Washington Post:

Sergeant Sentenced to Death for Killing Two Officers in Iraq

Associated Press
Friday, April 29, 2005; Page A06

FORT BRAGG, N.C., April 28 -- A military jury on Thursday sentenced Sgt. Hasan Akbar to die for the 2003 murders of two officers in a grenade attack at an Army camp in Kuwait during the opening days of the Iraq invasion.

The 15-person jury deliberated seven hours after hearing a barely audible and unsworn statement from Akbar, 34, who said he was sorry.

Akbar2.jpg

"I want to apologize for the attack that occurred. I felt that my life was in jeopardy, and I had no other options. I also want to ask you for forgiveness," Akbar told jurors.

They chose between sentences of death, life in prison or life without parole.

The same jury last week took 2 1/2 hours to convict him of two counts of premeditated murder and three counts of attempted premeditated murder.

The sentence will be the subject of an automatic appeal. If Akbar is executed, it would be by lethal injection.

Akbar stood at attention between his lawyers as the verdict was delivered. He gave no visible sign of emotion.

Deliberations paused earlier in the day after the jury reached a verdict, only to have one member request reconsideration. A military judge sent the 15-member panel back to vote early Thursday evening on whether to reconsider their decision.

Akbar spoke for less than a minute, making an unsworn statement that could not be cross-examined. He spoke in such a low voice that even prosecutors sitting nearby had trouble hearing, with one lawyer cupping his ear.

Prosecutors have said Akbar launched the attack on members of the 101st Airborne Division in March 2003 at Camp Pennsylvania because he was concerned about U.S. troops killing fellow Muslims in the Iraq war.

Although the defense contended Akbar was too mentally ill to plan the attack, they never disputed that it was he who threw grenades into troop tents in the early morning darkness and then fired on soldiers in the ensuing chaos.

Army Capt. Christopher Seifert, 27, and Air Force Maj. Gregory Stone, 40, were killed in the attack, and 14 others were wounded.

The court-martial is the first time since the Vietnam era that an American has been prosecuted on charges of murdering a fellow soldier during wartime. Akbar will join five others on the military's death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kan.

The last U.S. military execution was in 1961. Pfc. John A. Bennett of the Army was put to death after his conviction for the rape and murder of an 11-year-old Austrian girl.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, the loss of an American service member is always a tragedy. The death sentence of Sgt Akbar is only different in the sense that he is a murderer. His life won't be lost in the service of his country but it will be lost for the senseless murder of his brothers in arms.

The punishment fits the crime. Some say an 'eye for an eye' and others say 'live and let live', but in this case I have to say that the jury made the right decision.

superman s.giflagleRock Out!





Posted by SlagleRock at April 29, 2005 10:31 AM
Comments

I think the jury made the right decision too. While it's unlikely that the sentence will be carried out, what with the lack of wherwithal to carry out such a sentence, one can only hope they do. The only solice being is that this animal isn't going to one of the civilian hotels we call prison.

Posted by: Jack at April 29, 2005 09:52 AM

Lethal Injection?!?! What ever happened to a firing squad? Oh....that's right, it's "cruel and unusual punishment"....my rosey red patutt....maybe I am missing something...but tossing grenades in troop tents, last time I checked, seems to show a profound lack of concern on the part of the one who did the tossing, as to whether it was "cruel" or not. And if there was anything more horrific then a firing squad...I would be for that. Sorry I was on a number of honor guards (as bugler and at times carrying the casket) of men who through age, action, or various other ways honorably served their country, and still remember the griving familys....this scum deserves seven rifles, six rounds and optional bindfold ASAP.

Posted by: Guy S. at April 29, 2005 10:04 AM

Good Riddance.

Posted by: warthog at April 29, 2005 05:38 PM

My husband was in a camp very close to them when the attack took place. He told me about it before it hit the news, he said their camp obviously asssumed that it was an attack from the Iraq's.

I have a bad feeling that this sentence is going to cause alot of commotion because this man is Buddhist ( or Allah) or whatever it is, (no offense meant) but I think there will be a big stink where people are going to say that he was only sentnced to death because of his heritage to the Iraqi people. We'll see.

Thanks for all your doing over there Slagle.
I really appreciated your post about military spouses. Someohow many of them are forgotten. I know I was. Alot of people don't understand the hardship suffered by the entire family, especially when that soldier is a reservist. I say that because we took a $30,000 cut in pay when my husband was in Iraq and none of our debtors seemed to care that my husband was fighting for THIER rights, they wanted their money and they wanted it now. (rant over)
Dawn

Posted by: dawn at April 30, 2005 11:18 PM

I'm with the firing squad idea above. This is not a civilian murderer.

RWR

Posted by: RightWingRocker at May 1, 2005 10:19 AM

Do you see the bulletproof vest he's wearing?

Posted by: Collin at May 5, 2005 05:40 AM
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