Free Republic

FORT BRAGG, NC -- Lawyers for Pfc. Lynndie England moved Wednesday to throw out statements she made when first questioned about Iraqi prisoner abuse, including that reservists were just "joking around, having some fun." The motion was one of five taken up by military judge Col. Stephen Henley in a hearing in advance of England's Jan. 18 court-martial on abuse charges stemming from photos of her pointing and smiling at naked detainees at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison. Paul Arthur, an Army special investigator, testified that England was aware of her rights, including to have a lawyer present, when she was...

CUMBERLAND - For months, members of the 372nd Military Police Company harbored a terrible secret. The Army Reserve unit based near here - whose service in Iraq made many of its members hometown heroes - had boasted six months ago of its credentials for a new security assignment at a prison west of Baghdad. "We are relying heavily on our soldiers with correctional [officer] experience," said their newsletter, published in the local newspaper. "The regular Army can't touch us with experience." But months later, the prison detail was disgraced in news reports across the world. The Army said yesterday that...