Lynndie England set to plead guilty in Abu Ghraib

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Won't this ever die?...

 

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) - A military judge Wednesday threw out Pfc. Lynndie England's guilty plea to abusing Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison, saying he was not convinced the Army reservist who appeared in some of the most notorious photos in the scandal knew her actions were wrong at the time.

 

The mistrial marks a stunning turn in the case and sends it back to square one.

 

The case will be reviewed again by Fort Hood's commander, Lt. Gen. Thomas Metz, who will decide what charges, if any, England should face. If she is charged, the case would go back to a military equivalent of a grand jury hearing, an Article 32 proceeding, prosecution spokesman Capt. Cullen Sheppard said.

 

The military judge, Col. James Pohl, entered a plea of not guilty for England on a charge of conspiring with Pvt. Charles Graner Jr. to maltreat detainees at the Baghdad-area prison and a related charge.

 

The mistrial came after Graner, the reputed ringleader of the abuse, testified as a defense witness at England's sentencing hearing that pictures he took of England holding a naked prisoner on a leash at Abu Ghraib were meant to be used as a legitimate training aid for other guards.

 

Other photos showed England smiling while standing next to nude prisoners stacked in a pyramid and pointing at a prisoner's genitals.

 

England maintained the same stoic look she has had throughout the proceeding. During a recess before the plea deal was thrown out, England peeked at a sketch artist's drawing of Graner on the stand. "Don't forget the horns and the goatee," she said.

 

When England pleaded guilty Monday, she told the judge she knew that the pictures were being taken purely for the amusement of the guards.

 

Pohl said her statement and Graner's could not be reconciled.

 

"You can't have a one-person conspiracy," the judge said before he declared the mistrial and dismissed the sentencing jury.

 

Under military law, the judge could formally accept her guilty plea only if he was convinced that she knew at the time that what she was doing was illegal.

 

By rejecting the plea to the conspiracy charge, Pohl canceled the entire plea agreement. The agreement had carried a maximum sentence of 11 years in prison, but the prosecution and defense had a deal that capped the sentence at a lesser punishment; the length was not released.

 

Neither prosecution nor defense lawyers would speak to reporters after the deal was discarded. England, shielded by her defense team, would not comment outside the courtroom.

 

Allen Rudy, a Dallas attorney, said Wednesday he could not recall a military plea being scrapped under such circumstances during his 25 years as a Navy lawyer and judge.

 

"That is a shocker," Rudy said. "But (Pohl) has to protect the defendant in that situation. ... He has to make sure (England) wasn't talked into it by her lawyer or her parents or someone else."

 

During defense questioning, Graner said he looped the leash around the prisoner's shoulders as a

way to coax him out of a cell, and that it slipped up around his neck. He said he asked England to hold the strap while he took photos that he could show to other guards later to teach them this prisoner-handling technique.

 

At that point Pohl halted Graner's testimony and admonished the defense for admitting evidence that ran counter to England's plea on the conspiracy charge and one count of maltreating detainees.

 

The judge did not discuss the other five counts to which England had pleaded guilty.

Graner, who is said to be the father of England's infant son, was found guilty in January and is serving a 10-year prison term for his role in the scandal.

 

In a handwritten note given to reporters Tuesday, Graner had said he wanted England to fight the charges.

 

"Knowing what happened in Iraq, it was very upsetting to see Lynn plead guilty to her charges," he wrote. "I would hope that by doing so she will have a better chance at a good sentence."

 

Graner maintains that he and the other Abu Ghraib guards were following orders from higher-ranking interrogators when they abused the detainees.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Won't this ever die?

 

I guess it did. Fuck you all...

[The Czech Republic 0]

YOU GUYS VIEWED IT 41 TIMES AND COULDN'T REPLY?!?!

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Woah, woah, woah, I didn't complain about my reply-to-post ratio -- don't make me into the next CronoT. That's something a person could get killed over...

[LessonInMachismo 0]

Locking up heroes...what is this country coming to?

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Well, all the pundits and comedians were joking that she looks like she has Down syndrome or fetal acohol poisoning, and maybe it is partially true.

[NoCalMike 0]

Amazing how she is treated by the media because she is "unattractive" Yet the hearts and minds of all the suburbianites across america basically stopped waiting in anticipation for the Scott Peterson verdict.

 

See, we can't have this hear end up looking like England wasn't acting on her own, no no, we need some more folks to come forward and roll over on private england so it can be squashed while punishing the lowest ranking person possible.

[Guest MikeSC]

Amazing how she is treated by the media because she is "unattractive"

Ask Paula Jones, Linda Tripp, or Katherine Harris about how that feels.

-=Mike

[NoCalMike 0]

Amazing how she is treated by the media because she is "unattractive"

Ask Paula Jones, Linda Tripp, or Katherine Harris about how that feels.

-=Mike

wouldn't that kind of come off as rude to ask them that though?

[Guest MikeSC]

Seeing as how they dealt with it for years from the Left, I'm sure they're fine with it at this point.

-=Mike

[NoCalMike 0]

Seeing as how they dealt with it for years from the Left, I'm sure they're fine with it at this point.

              -=Mike

Well that and all three of them getting plastic surgery....they sure showed them who's boss!

[Guest MikeSC]

Seeing as how they dealt with it for years from the Left, I'm sure they're fine with it at this point.

              -=Mike

Well that and all three of them getting plastic surgery....they sure showed them who's boss!

Gee, only getting called trailer park trash, being made into "The bad guy" in the impeachment scandal, or having her appearance criticized because she actually did her job?

 

Yep, THAT is some respect for women from the left there.

 

The only plus of the Clinton years was that it showed how non-existant the respect for women in the DNC actually was.

-=Mike

[The Czech Republic 0]

Janet Reno sucked at her job, AND was ugly.

[Guest Cerebus]

Who cares? Let her rot.

[BUTT 0]

13 posts in and it's already a Clinton-bashing thread. Good work, guys.

[Hogan Made Wrestling 0]

How is it that Jay Leno now represents "the Left" now? Because he's made more jokes about the appearance of these fugly political-related women than anyone (from both sides).

[Guest MikeSC]

How is it that Jay Leno now represents "the Left" now? Because he's made more jokes about the appearance of these fugly political-related women than anyone (from both sides).

Who was thinking of Leno?

-=Mike

[Hogan Made Wrestling 0]

How is it that Jay Leno now represents "the Left" now? Because he's made more jokes about the appearance of these fugly political-related women than anyone (from both sides).

Who was thinking of Leno?

-=Mike

Maybe it's just me, but I can't really think of all that many times the legitimate media spent time bashing people's appearances (and I DON'T mean on shit like Crossfire). Every time I think of Linda Tripp, I picture that video on Leno where he compared her to a horse.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

What about columnists -- do you consider them "legit"? Because if so, Katherine Harris got hammered back in '00 over her looks...

[Slayer 0]

How is it that Jay Leno now represents "the Left" now?

I'll tell you what Jay Leno doesn't represent: Comedy.

[Ripper 0]

How is it that Jay Leno now represents "the Left" now?

I'll tell you what Jay Leno doesn't represent: Comedy.

Oh okay you know, it is so fashionable to take a shot at Jay Leno. Look, the fact is the man is out there every bloody night with fresh material and he's charming.

[The Czech Republic 0]

God, Ripper, you ARE the #1 contrarian of TSM now. Let me ask you this. Have you ever considered a career with the American Civil Liberties Union?

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Bite me, hippie. I like Leno, too. *Reaches out to Ripper...*

 

 

We shall overcome...

[Ripper 0]

Well...Leno rules.

 

 

I mean, sure the jokes suck in his monolouge, but they drop in 3-4 gems and the rest of the time its him and Kevin calling each other gay, or making dick jokes and laughing their asses off about it. Plus he is the best interviewer this side of Conan on the late night scene, and honestly, I find the Dave/Paul dynamic very annoying. Paul is more of a yes man to me while at least Kevin takes shots at Jay and his bad jokes.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

They drop in 3-4 gems and the rest of the time its him and Kevin calling each other gay, or making dick jokes and laughing their asses off about it.

 

Don't forget the weed jokes.

 

By the way, in my "we shall overcome picture" is it just me or does that black kid to the far left have different arms?...

[tominator89 0]

By the way, in my "we shall overcome picture" is it just me or does that black kid to the far left have different arms?...

Lol...Thanks for pointing that out. One arm looks like Urkel, the other like a black Scott Steiner or something.

[Ripper 0]

By the way, in my "we shall overcome picture" is it just me or does that black kid to the far left have different arms?...

Lol...Thanks for pointing that out. One arm looks like Urkel, the other like a black Scott Steiner or something.

It was just another way to hold the black man down. Blacks were only allowed to be half in shape.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I don't think anyone's going to hold down that roided up arm...

[Slayer 0]

I got the joke in Ripper's first post

 

As for his second more serious post... the radio station I listen to airs a condensed version of Leno's monologue from the previous night, and for the most part I can listen to it straight faced. Occasionally I'll crack a grin, but never laugh aloud.

 

Admittedly, half the blame doesn't fall on him, since the writers make the bad jokes, but half the blame does fall on him because his delivery, for the most part, sucks.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

What, Ripper doesn't like Leno?

 

Next thing you know you'll tell me he's black...