Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
New York Post
April 30, 2007
By Melissa Jane Kronfeld and Eric Lenkowitz
The Army commander who faces a possible death sentence in Iraq on a treason charge has been in legal hot water before - for aggravated child abuse and resisting arrest, The Post has learned.
Lt. Col. William Steele, 51, and his wife lost custody of the wife's then-11-year-old son after a long court battle revealed that the couple denied the boy food and furniture and routinely locked him out of the family home, sources close to the case said.
The son, now 25, later joined the Army and served two tours in Iraq.
Steele, a Desert Storm veteran, was an army reservist when he was arrested on the abuse charges Nov. 1, 1993. Court papers say Steele violently resisted the arresting officers, though all charges were later dropped.
Steele is charged in Iraq with providing unmonitored cellphones to detainees, having an illicit relationship with a translator and fraternizing with an inmate's daughter.
Steele's stepson endured harsh conditions in the Spring Hill, Fla., home his mother shared with new husband Steele for six years, starting at age 5.
"[The boy] was punched. He was thrown across the room for eating food without asking," said a source, citing court records and talks with the child.
Steele's wife did not return a call for comment.
April 30, 2007
By Melissa Jane Kronfeld and Eric Lenkowitz
The Army commander who faces a possible death sentence in Iraq on a treason charge has been in legal hot water before - for aggravated child abuse and resisting arrest, The Post has learned.
Lt. Col. William Steele, 51, and his wife lost custody of the wife's then-11-year-old son after a long court battle revealed that the couple denied the boy food and furniture and routinely locked him out of the family home, sources close to the case said.
The son, now 25, later joined the Army and served two tours in Iraq.
Steele, a Desert Storm veteran, was an army reservist when he was arrested on the abuse charges Nov. 1, 1993. Court papers say Steele violently resisted the arresting officers, though all charges were later dropped.
Steele is charged in Iraq with providing unmonitored cellphones to detainees, having an illicit relationship with a translator and fraternizing with an inmate's daughter.
Steele's stepson endured harsh conditions in the Spring Hill, Fla., home his mother shared with new husband Steele for six years, starting at age 5.
"[The boy] was punched. He was thrown across the room for eating food without asking," said a source, citing court records and talks with the child.
Steele's wife did not return a call for comment.