Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Philadelphia Inquirer
October 16, 2007 At the court-martial, the defense said he sought to win Iraqi 'hearts and minds.'
By Katarina Kratovac, Associated Press
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - A prosecutor said yesterday that a former U.S. military police commander aided the enemy by letting top detainees make unmonitored cell-phone calls, but his attorney described the officer as only trying "to win the hearts and minds of Iraqis."
The sides faced off at the opening of the court-martial of Lt. Col. William H. Steele, an Army reservist who oversaw lockups that included the area where Saddam Hussein spent his final days.
Steele, 52, of Prince George, Va., is accused of four crimes that include allowing the prisoners to use a cell phone and giving special privileges to an Iraqi woman working as an interpreter.
Steele pleaded guilty this month to three other charges, including storing and improperly handling classified information. They carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison, forfeiture of pay, and dismissal from the Army, according to the U.S. military.
If convicted in the court-martial, Steele faces a life sentence for the most serious charge stemming from the cell-phone use.
The alleged incidents took place between October 2005 and February 2007. Steele was commander of the 451st Military Police Detachment at Camp Cropper prison, which held Hussein before he was hanged in December.
The prisoners Steele allegedly let make the cell-phone calls have not been identified. Much of the opening day of the trial was closed because classified information was before the court, officials said.
"This trial is not about aiding the enemy, but about a lieutenant colonel who wanted to ensure the humane treatment of civilians held at Camp Cropper," said Steele's defense attorney, Capt. Yolanda D. McCray. "He sought to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqis."
During pretrial testimony in June, witnesses said Steele approved buying Cuban cigars for Hussein, fraternized with a detainee's daughter, and used his service pistol to intimidate tower guards. He has been behind bars in Kuwait since March.
The prosecutor, Capt. Daniel J. Myers, asked the judge to find Steele guilty of all charges.
"Some of the most important and most dangerous detainees were in custody at Camp Cropper," Myers said. "It's a remarkably simple case.. . . The prosecution will show that the accused does not think the rules apply to him."
He said "incidents" resulted from those phone calls that put lives of U.S. servicemen in danger, but he did not elaborate.
October 16, 2007 At the court-martial, the defense said he sought to win Iraqi 'hearts and minds.'
By Katarina Kratovac, Associated Press
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - A prosecutor said yesterday that a former U.S. military police commander aided the enemy by letting top detainees make unmonitored cell-phone calls, but his attorney described the officer as only trying "to win the hearts and minds of Iraqis."
The sides faced off at the opening of the court-martial of Lt. Col. William H. Steele, an Army reservist who oversaw lockups that included the area where Saddam Hussein spent his final days.
Steele, 52, of Prince George, Va., is accused of four crimes that include allowing the prisoners to use a cell phone and giving special privileges to an Iraqi woman working as an interpreter.
Steele pleaded guilty this month to three other charges, including storing and improperly handling classified information. They carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison, forfeiture of pay, and dismissal from the Army, according to the U.S. military.
If convicted in the court-martial, Steele faces a life sentence for the most serious charge stemming from the cell-phone use.
The alleged incidents took place between October 2005 and February 2007. Steele was commander of the 451st Military Police Detachment at Camp Cropper prison, which held Hussein before he was hanged in December.
The prisoners Steele allegedly let make the cell-phone calls have not been identified. Much of the opening day of the trial was closed because classified information was before the court, officials said.
"This trial is not about aiding the enemy, but about a lieutenant colonel who wanted to ensure the humane treatment of civilians held at Camp Cropper," said Steele's defense attorney, Capt. Yolanda D. McCray. "He sought to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqis."
During pretrial testimony in June, witnesses said Steele approved buying Cuban cigars for Hussein, fraternized with a detainee's daughter, and used his service pistol to intimidate tower guards. He has been behind bars in Kuwait since March.
The prosecutor, Capt. Daniel J. Myers, asked the judge to find Steele guilty of all charges.
"Some of the most important and most dangerous detainees were in custody at Camp Cropper," Myers said. "It's a remarkably simple case.. . . The prosecution will show that the accused does not think the rules apply to him."
He said "incidents" resulted from those phone calls that put lives of U.S. servicemen in danger, but he did not elaborate.