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CWO3 Lewis E. Welshofer Jr.
Born1964 (age 59–60)
AllegianceUnited States United States of America
Service/branchUnited States Army
RankChief Warrant Officer 3
Battles/warsWar in Iraq

Lewis E. Welshofer Jr. is a United States Army soldier, convicted of homicide of an Iraqi prisoner of war on November 23, 2003 in al-Qaim. Welshofer was then serving as a Chief Warrant Officer in the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment.[citation needed]

Following a technique he alleged was approved by his superiors, Welshofer placed Iraqi Major General Abed Hamed Mowhoush headfirst into a sleeping bag, wrapped the bag tightly with electrical cords, then sat on his chest and held his mouth closed. General Mowhoush had eight broken ribs from an earlier beating, allegedly carried out by CIA contractors under Welshofer's direction. American forces believed Mowhoush, a former high-level officer in Saddam Hussein's regime, was one of the leaders of the Iraqi insurgency. He had voluntarily surrendered to the Americans in hopes of helping free his sons, who were being held by the Americans.

In his defense, Welshofer had stressed that the General was refusing to acknowledge leading the insurgency, and that his superiors were insisting that Army interrogators "take the gloves off" when dealing with Iraqi prisoners. At his court martial, a CIA official who observed Welshofer's interrogation techniques, wrote a memo because he was alarmed when Welshofer told him that he violated interrogation rules every day.[citation needed]

On January 17, 2006, military judge Mark Toole rejected the request from attorney Frank Spinner, to dismiss the charges. CWO Jefferson L. Williams and Spc Jerry L. Loper both agreed to testify against Welshofer in exchange for a reduction in their own charges relating to the death. Welshofer claimed he was only following orders which came all the way from the Pentagon and Donald Rumsfeld.[citation needed]

Welshofer was ultimately convicted of negligent homicide, and negligent dereliction of duty on January 21, 2006. The jury took 6 hours of deliberation. Welshofer could have faced a dishonorable discharge as well as up to 39 months in prison, but received only 60 days of barracks confinement and he was ordered to forfeit $6,000 in salary.[1] Critics around the world questioned the verdict's leniency.[2][3][4][5][6][7]

References

  1. ^ "404 error". CNN.com. Archived from the original on February 19, 2006. Retrieved 2006-03-23. ((cite news)): Cite uses generic title (help)
  2. ^ "Light sentence; wrong message". The Grand Rapids Press. January 31, 2006. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. ((cite journal)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "The man who holds the CIA accountable doesn't". St Petersburg Times. January 29, 2006.
  4. ^ Nicholas Riccardi (2006-01-20). "Trial Illuminates Dark Tactics of Interrogation". Los Angeles Times. p. A1. Archived from the original on 2008-10-17. Retrieved 2008-10-17. ((cite news)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ Damon, Andre (January 30, 2006). "Army court martial conceals CIA involvement in death of former Iraqi general". Uruknet.info. Retrieved 2006-03-23.
  6. ^ Colson, Nicole (February 3, 2006). "Slap on the wrist for killing Iraqi detainee". Socialist Worker Online. Retrieved 2006-03-23.
  7. ^ "Soldier escapes jail time over prisoner death". Gulf Times. January 25, 2006. Archived from the original on January 28, 2006. ((cite journal)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
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