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Army officer found guilty in Iraqi's death
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-01-22 14:52
An Army interrogator was convicted of negligent homicide late Saturday in the
death of an Iraqi general at a detention camp.
A panel of six Army officers also convicted Chief Warrant Officer Lewis
Welshofer Jr., 43, of negligent dereliction of duty but acquitted him of assault
after six hours of deliberations.
Welshofer was accused of putting a sleeping bag over the head of Iraqi Maj.
Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush, sitting on his chest and using his hand to cover the
general's mouth while asking him questions in 2003.
Welshofer, who stood silently and showed no reaction when the verdict was
announced, faces a dishonorable discharge and up to three years in prison for
negligent homicide and three months for negligent dereliction of duty.
Sentencing was scheduled for Monday.
If convicted of the original murder charge, he could have been sentenced to
life in prison.
The defense had argued a heart condition caused Mowhoush's death, and that
Welshofer's commanders had approved the interrogation technique.
"What he was doing he was doing in the open, and he was doing it because he
believed the information in fact would save lives," attorney Frank Spinner said.
Prosecutor Maj. Tiernan Dolan described a rogue interrogator who became
frustrated with Mowhoush's refusal to answer questions and escalated his
techniques from simple interviews to beatings to simulating drowning, and
finally, to death.
"He treated that general worse than you would treat a dog and he did so
knowing he was required to treat the general humanely," Dolan said.
Welshofer used his sleeping bag technique in the presence of lower ranking
soldiers, but never in the presence of officers with the authority to stop him,
Dolan said.
The treatment of the Iraqi general "could fairly be described as torture,"
Dolan said.
In an e-mail to a commander, Dolan said, Welshofer wrote that restrictions on
interrogation techniques were impeding the Army's ability to gather
intelligence. Welshofer wrote that authorized techniques came from Cold War-era
doctrine that did not apply in Iraq, Dolan said.
"Our enemy understands force, not psychological mind games," Dolan quoted
from Welshofer's message. Dolan said an officer responded by telling Welshofer
to "take a deep breath and remember who we are."
The defense urged jurors to consider conditions in Iraq at the time of the
interrogation: Soldiers were being killed in an increasingly lethal and
increasingly bold insurgency. Welshofer had to make some decisions on his own
because guidance was lacking and other techniques weren't working, Spinner said.
Officials believed Mowhoush had information that would "break the back of the
whole insurgency," said defense attorney Capt. Ryan Rosauer. They also thought
Mowhoush helping to bring foreign fighters into Iraq from across the Syrian
border, he said.
Several prosecution witnesses, including one whose identity is classified and
who testified in a closed session, had been granted immunity in exchange for
their cooperation, Spinner noted. Two soldiers who were initially charged with
murder in the case also were given immunity.
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