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<a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/C007E5B9-5FCD-46F2-9523-9CD9AFCF0604.htm" eudora="autourl">
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/C007E5B9-5FCD-46F2-9523-9CD9AFCF0604.htm<br>
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</a>Lethal US practice revealed in trial<br><br>
Tuesday 22 March 2005 8:01 AM GMT <br><br>
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<b>A US soldier accused of beating an Afghan civilian to death in 2002
should not be held solely responsible because authority figures used the
same tactics, his attorney says.<br><br>
</b>Private First Class Willie Brand of the 377th Military Police Company
is charged with involuntary manslaughter, maiming, assault, maltreatment
and false swearing. <br><br>
The Cincinnati man is accused of killing an Afghan civilian identified
only as Dilawar at the main US detention facility in Bagram, Afghanistan,
by destroying his leg muscle tissue with repeated knee strikes. <br><br>
On Monday, the opening day of Brand's Article 32 hearing, attorney John
Galligan said Brand's superiors either directly knew or should have known
about the use of the knee-strike method of beating.<br><br>
<b>Knee-strikes common<br><br>
</b>He said records and testimony would show that others in positions of
authority also used the practice.<br><br>
"Unfortunately, we have many soldiers deployed to a war zone with
inadequate training, equipment and resources to conduct very dangerous
missions in a new type of war," Galligan said. <br><br>
The hearing, which is being held at Fort Bliss because it is considered a
neutral location, will determine whether the case is referred for a
general court martial. It is expected to last two to three days.
<br><br>
"I thought it went reasonably well, like a dental appointment,"
Brand told the El Paso Times after Monday's hearing ended. <br><br>
<b>Beaten to death<br><br>
</b>Brand is accused of beating Dilawar to death over a five-day period
at Bagram Control Point just north of Kabul. <br><br>
An autopsy showed that Dilawar's legs were so damaged by blows that
amputation would have been necessary if he had survived. <br><br>
Dilawar died from "blunt force trauma to the lower extremities
complicating coronary artery disease", according to a US Army report
dated 6 July 2004. <br><br>
Galligan said the knee-strike technique is a "non-lethal mechanism
utilised to ensure compliance with a combative detainee".<br><br>
"We would argue that [the knee strikes] had been legitimately done
in the course of restraining an individual," he said. <br><br>
<br>
<b>Assault and maltreatment<br><br>
</b>The charges against Brand include assault and maltreatment of another
prisoner, Mullah Habib Allah. <br><br>
Habib Allah also died, but Brand is not charged in connection with his
death. <br><br>
Another member of the Cincinnati-based 377th Company, Sergeant James
Boland, has been charged with assault, maltreatment and dereliction of
duty in Dilawar's death, and dereliction of duty in Habib Allah's death.
<br><br>
The army on Monday said in a statement that it is investigating whether
other soldiers also were involved.<br><br>
You can find this article at:<br>
<a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/C007E5B9-5FCD-46F2-9523-9CD9AFCF0604.htm" eudora="autourl">
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/C007E5B9-5FCD-46F2-9523-9CD9AFCF0604.htm</a>
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