Warrior Fund
The WARRIOR FUND
http://www.warrior-fund.org/
Beginning Balance (as of 10/31/06): $ 23,071.39
Disbursements to date (11/14/06): $ 3,707.03
ENDING BALANCE as of 11/14/06: $ 19,364.36
Our Goal: $ 2,500,000.00 (Just one case alone could run into a million dollars or more)
After reading the following, please consider donating as much as you can, as often as you can, and encourage your friends, family members and acquaintances to come here, to this page, and do the same. Our ONLY source of funding the defense of our Warriors is the American Public. And, every penny donated is tax-deductible according to the law. Use the internet and emails to help us get the word out about this Fund. If you have a website, consider linking us. If you have or use a blog, consider supporting aggressively this effort.
UPDATE: November 14, 2006
The Warrior Fund has received four (4) Petitions ( with three already being acted upon) for Legal Aid Assistance with seven (7) more being prepared for submission. The Cases we are currently involved with include:
The Pendleton 8: With four of the eight defendents entering into plea bargains (Bacos, Jodka, Jackson and Shumate), it makes the defense of the remaining four Marines that much more difficult. BUT...plea bargains are not absolute proof of the guilt of the remaining four. The Warrior Fund has received one Petition for financial assistance and two more are in the works.
There are many reasons why an individual might enter into a plea bargain. In the main, it is because of government pressure (often times involving direct lies, coercion, and the fear (real or imagined) of a more serious sentence. Family finances play a key role as well as many families simply cannot afford the costs involved with an adequate defense.
With the government targeting "the most 'vulnerable' of the defendants in any given case (by putting pressure on the families of defendants to have their son's enter into a "plea bargain", thereby "convincing" the families that, in doing so, the emotional distress and financial loss will be greatly reduced and that their sons won't spend their lives behind bars...regardless of guilt or innocence) it makes it all the more difficult to defend those who maintain their innocence. A PLEA BARGAIN IS NOT "PROOF POSITIVE" OF THE GUILT OF ANY OTHER.
Those who continue to profess their innocence are facing an even more difficult challenge: facing the accusations of their own comrades in arms. We are all fully aware that "anyone can convince anyone of anything, given the resources ... and time."
Simply put: we MUST keep this in mind and never turn our backs on our soldiers, airmen, marines and sailors. Regardless of what the government charges them with. Regardless the plea bargaining. Those who maintain their innocence are INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY. ... not the other way around!
A primary reason for attorneys and family to push their sons towards a plea bargain (EVEN IF INNOCENT) is financial! As the bills mount up, far too many families simply cannot afford to fight for their sons - even if they believe their sons are completely innocent. Many of the families cannot even afford to visit their sons because of distance and finances. This plays well into the hands of the prosecutors!
The 101st Airborne "3": Very little has been made known to the public about Staff Sergeant Raymond L Girouard or Private First Class Corey Clagett. These are two of three soldiers accused of alleged crimes committed while in combat. For a good background "evaluation" of this case, click on their Article 32 Hearing that was held in Iraq in August of 2005 will provide you a good insight. The third soldier is William B Hunsaker.
Please come back to this web page for continuing updates, posted each week.
Why did United American Patriots establish this Fund? As the war on terrorism continues and expands, it has become alarmingly obvious that the enemy has well learned how to manipulate and use the mainstream mass media for propaganda, to include inciting our nation - and the world - against our own Armed Forces members. One of the enemy’s newest - and most formidable - weapons is to accuse our young Warriors of having committed "crimes and atrocities" while engaged in combat actions, to include "providing witnesses, photos, etc". And, it is painfully obvious that they are being successful in "winning the hearts and minds" of those who don't know any better. The mainstream media ("MSM") has played a significant role in all this - from the prosecution's point of view - with little from the defendants' involved.
Far too many of our elected officials have "bought into" this propaganda war. Some politicians have even publicly convicted some of our young men in public - even before any investigation has been completed or charges filed.
The "Politics of Propaganda" is an infectious disease that appears to have permeated the very highest levels within our government. And the only antidote for this disease, apparently, is the sacrificial conviction of those least able to properly defend themselves; our Privates, Corporals, Sergeants and Lieutenants who have faced the horror of combat time and again.
As of June 1, 2006 more than 28 American Soldiers, Marines (and even one Navy Corpsman) have been accused and/or charged with capital crimes, purported by the enemy to have occurred during combat actions. Many have already faced Article 32 hearings (supposedly comparable to our civilian grand juries) and many more are still awaiting their hearing.
And there will be more such accusations and charges as this war continues: the enemy has learned far too well our collective reaction to such things on the world stage and how to use the media as its fist. Make no mistake - these cases have far-flung geo-political implications. That is why we believe they are being so aggressively pursued by our government...to appease foreign nationals!
The utter damnation of all this is that those who face end-of-life convictions are those least capable of mounting a viable and effective defense. Not even a Lieutenants monthly paycheck can afford a legal defense that could run well into the millions of dollars. So, the families of these Warriors have had to mortgage their homes, sell their homes, and borrow monies they know they could not repay in two lifetimes. And this, with the money meter just starting. These families are the true innocent victims!
Where are these Warriors and their families to turn? Who will "Defend Those Who Defend Us"?
DECISION: The Board of Directors for United American Patriots, during the first two weeks of June 2006, exchanged emails and phone calls to discuss the war on terrorism and its impact on, not only our nation, but particularly the impact on our military members – and their families - who are fighting it. Thus, on 16 June 2006, a unanimous decision was made to add a 6th Mission to our Corporate Mission Statement; the establishment of a legal defense fund for members of our Armed Forces accused and/or charged with "crimes and atrocities" committed during combat operations.
This Legal Defense Fund – named “The Warrior Fund” - was established for the express purpose of raising money to be used for legitimate legal expenses in the defense of members of our Armed Forces who, in the conduct of combat actions in the War on Terrorism, have been “alleged" or “charged" with crimes supposedly committed during such combat actions.
RATIONALE: The men and women in our Armed Forces, like ALL American citizens, must be presumed “Innocent Until Proven Guilty ".
A Presumption of Innocence is the cornerstone of our society and our military men and women deserve no less than a fair and impartial hearing. We at United American Patriots are asking American’s citizens to join with us in “ Defending Those Who Defend Us ".
We are not the judge nor are we the jury. Nor should anyone else be who is not legally vested with such responsibility. Our position is to not sit in judgment but rather, to ensure we do all that is possible to assure a proper and effective effort to defend our warriors against very dubious and suspicious charges.
Until "proven guilty", and even then - until after all appeals have been exhausted - we will continue to support and stand by them and we ask you, the American people to do the same by actively supporting their defense with your money and any other means of support.
LEGITIMACY : To ensure that the American public would feel confident that this effort is – and would always remain - completely legitimate and totally "honest" we have gone to great pains to organize it.
To that end, we have posted all of our legal status documents, and the By Laws for the Warrior Fund's Directors, here on our website.
We have developed a comprehensive program that includes an on line “Petition for Financial Aid” that can be downloaded from any computer and completed by our Warrior defenders or their families. The download contains clear instructions as to what information is required and how and where to submit the completed application.
Once the application has been received, and all is in order, a Case file is assigned and the point of contact in the application contacted to begin the support process.
Financial oversight: The American public can rest absolutely certain that every penny donated to The Warrior Fund goes into the Fund and will be used for the purposes expressed herein.
No one associated with this Fund or United American Patriots receives any compensation for their services.
We have a Certified Public Accountant (a member of the Board of Directors for United American Patriots) to oversee each and every transaction. Each Director for United American Patriots and each Director of The Warrior Fund has free access to any and all financial transactions, and, receives regular and frequent financial reports.
Please click on any of the links in the left side-bar of this page for additional information. You may also email the President of the Board of Directors for either United American Patriots or The Warrior Fund if you have a specific concern or question.
Email: the President of the Warrior Fund
madisonmarine@comcast.net
Email: the President of United American Patriots
president@unitedamericanpatriots.org
This is worth a thread of its own.
Your post #391 is not the part of the exclusive that I was speaking of.