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| US to seek death penalty in Afghan |
| US to seek death penalty in Afghan massacre case
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| UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
, 20-December-2012
5:22:14 AM |
| Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for an American soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan villagers in one of the most appalling atrocities of the war, the US military said on Wednesday.
Staff Sergeant Robert Bales faces 16 murder charges, six of attempted murder, seven of assault and two of using drugs. Seventeen of the 22 people killed or wounded were women or children and almost all were shot in the head.
If sentenced to death, Bales could be the first US soldier executed in over half a century: the last was in 1961 when Private John Bennett was hanged for rape and attempted murder, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
The 39-year-old is to face a full court martial authorised to sentence him to a maximum penalty of death for the alleged March massacre, the military announced.
"This decision was made after reviewing the Article 32 report of investigation," said a statement from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, referring to the report compiled from last month's so-called Article 32 hearings.
"The government will seek the death penalty," base spokesman Gary Dangerfield told AFP. The court martial will take place at the base, in the western state of Washington, but no trial date has been set.
"If convicted of all charges (and specifications), the maximum punishment is death," said the base statement.
But it stressed that for capital punishment to be imposed, the court martial must unanimously agree certain conditions.
These are that Bales "is guilty of the eligible crime; at least one aggravating factor exists; and that the aggravating factor must substantially outweigh any extenuating or mitigating circumstances," it said.
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