« Go ahead and worry . . . | Main | 9-year-olds get even smarter »
July 17, 2005
It's not the questions . . .
"Don't lay it on me, Captain Crisp. It was not the questions that caused the problems. It was the answers."
Col. James Pohl, the Army Judge hearing Pfc. Lynndie England's trial on charges of abusing prisoners in Iraq.
Col. Pohl was responding to Pfc. England's attorney, Capt. Jonathan Crisp's argument that it was Col. Pohl's "line of questioning" that led to the mistrial in England's case in May 2005.
At the May 2005 hearing, Col. Pohl declared a mistrial during the sentencing phase (after England had agreed to plead guilty to abusing prisoners). It was during the sentencing that Col. Pohl's questioning of England's immediate supervisor, Sgt. Charles Garner, indicated that England may have reasonably believed she was following orders when she engaged in the acts of abuse, thereby invalidating her guilty plea.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer; 8 July, 2005; p. A5; "Abu Ghraib trial judge won't step down"
Posted by williamfrick at July 17, 2005 8:08 AM