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San Antonio Express-News
January 31, 2008 By Scott Huddleston, Express-News
A San Antonio soldier charged with premeditated murder in the death of an insurgent in Iraq has been released from jail while awaiting trial.
Sgt. Leonardo Treviño reported for work Wednesday at Fort Hood, free of the handcuffs and leg shackles he wore at legal hearings. Col. Gregory Gross, the military judge in the case, ruled late Tuesday that pretrial confinement was not warranted.
While Treviño's troubles are far from over, his release allows him to enjoy freedom in his home state for the first time in more than a year. He got married at a relative's ranch in Von Ormy on Dec. 23, 2006, during a two-week furlough, and has since been either serving in Iraq or held in confinement.
"There are no words to describe how overwhelmed I am with happiness," said his wife, Veronica Treviño. "It was hard trying to stay strong, not being able to hold my husband."
Although the Army isn't seeking the death penalty in the case, Treviño could face prison time. He's accused of fatally shooting an unarmed, seriously wounded al-Qaida insurgent June 26 in Muqdadiyah, and of ordering another soldier to lay a pistol at the scene to make the shooting appear justified.
His lawyer, Richard Stevens, has said new details will come out in Treviño's court-martial. During an Article 32 hearing last month, Stevens said other witnesses saw the insurgent reach for weapons and curse the soldiers in a threatening manner. A trial is tentatively set to begin March 10.
Government lawyers argued that Treviño, if released, would interfere with witnesses in the case, Stevens said.
"The judge ruled that it was not foreseeable that he would do that," he said.
Treviño, 30, had been held since he was charged in September, first in Kuwait, then at the Bell County Jail in Belton when his unit returned in November. He no longer is in the same unit as soldiers testifying in the case, including two awaiting trial on lesser charges, Stevens said.
Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales, another San Antonian charged with shooting an Iraqi detainee in an unrelated case, was given limited duties at his base there when he was charged last summer with premeditated murder, but was never held in confinement. He's now awaiting trial in Hawaii.
Stevens said he'd tried since November to get his client released. Treviño's relatives in San Antonio include his wife and stepson, 14, and two children ages 5 and 7 from a previous marriage.
"Mostly I'm happy for him and his family," Stevens said.
shuddleston@express-news.net
January 31, 2008 By Scott Huddleston, Express-News
A San Antonio soldier charged with premeditated murder in the death of an insurgent in Iraq has been released from jail while awaiting trial.
Sgt. Leonardo Treviño reported for work Wednesday at Fort Hood, free of the handcuffs and leg shackles he wore at legal hearings. Col. Gregory Gross, the military judge in the case, ruled late Tuesday that pretrial confinement was not warranted.
While Treviño's troubles are far from over, his release allows him to enjoy freedom in his home state for the first time in more than a year. He got married at a relative's ranch in Von Ormy on Dec. 23, 2006, during a two-week furlough, and has since been either serving in Iraq or held in confinement.
"There are no words to describe how overwhelmed I am with happiness," said his wife, Veronica Treviño. "It was hard trying to stay strong, not being able to hold my husband."
Although the Army isn't seeking the death penalty in the case, Treviño could face prison time. He's accused of fatally shooting an unarmed, seriously wounded al-Qaida insurgent June 26 in Muqdadiyah, and of ordering another soldier to lay a pistol at the scene to make the shooting appear justified.
His lawyer, Richard Stevens, has said new details will come out in Treviño's court-martial. During an Article 32 hearing last month, Stevens said other witnesses saw the insurgent reach for weapons and curse the soldiers in a threatening manner. A trial is tentatively set to begin March 10.
Government lawyers argued that Treviño, if released, would interfere with witnesses in the case, Stevens said.
"The judge ruled that it was not foreseeable that he would do that," he said.
Treviño, 30, had been held since he was charged in September, first in Kuwait, then at the Bell County Jail in Belton when his unit returned in November. He no longer is in the same unit as soldiers testifying in the case, including two awaiting trial on lesser charges, Stevens said.
Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales, another San Antonian charged with shooting an Iraqi detainee in an unrelated case, was given limited duties at his base there when he was charged last summer with premeditated murder, but was never held in confinement. He's now awaiting trial in Hawaii.
Stevens said he'd tried since November to get his client released. Treviño's relatives in San Antonio include his wife and stepson, 14, and two children ages 5 and 7 from a previous marriage.
"Mostly I'm happy for him and his family," Stevens said.
shuddleston@express-news.net