Posted on 05/20/2016 5:11:12 AM PDT by huldah1776
KERNERSVILLE, N.C. — An unusual coalition of largely older and conservative former military men and younger, left-leaning law students are waging a joint campaign for one of the most unlikely causes: clemency for troops convicted of killing civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan. They want to push President Obama to reduce sentences and grant pardons for seven convicted war criminals, ranging from a private who followed an order to shoot unarmed detainees, to the more well-known case of Robert Bales, an Army staff sergeant sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of 16 Afghan civilians in 2012.
The campaign started with Herbert Donahue, a retired Marine Corps major, and his tiny organization called United American Patriots, tucked in a quiet office park here.
****snip****
“In Vietnam I was supposed to radio in to ask permission every time I opened fire, but there wasn’t time,” Mr. Donahue said. “So after my second patrol, I never called back to request permission until I was sitting on a mountain of bodies. Today, you couldn’t do that. It’s gotten so a guy has to have a lawyer in the foxhole next to him. If I had it the way guys do today, I’d have been court-martialed a thousand times.”
****snip****
“Friends of mine pushed back saying, ‘How can you represent this guy when there are innocent people who could use your help?’ I have honestly questioned my own involvement,” said Michael Lockman, 31, a law student who wrote the clemency petition for Mr. Bales. “But when you really start to learn about some of these cases, there is a clear case for mercy. The man had clear mental health issues the Army knew about but chose to ignore. There is shared responsibility for his crime.”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
be aware that when you sign the petition, the WH doesn’t automatically send and email. Check your email again later to verify. That’s one way to slow down the process and prevent signatures.
“to the more well-known case of Robert Bales, an Army staff sergeant sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of 16 Afghan civilians in 2012”
Bales should be locked up. On his own, not in a combat action, just walked around murdering people including numerous kids. He should not be in this group.
Face value, yes, but there must be more to it or I don’t think he would be included.
It is exactly because of this that I decided all war is murder. If you want more details Freepmail me.
why don’t you post what you know and why you think that for all?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.