An Army sergeant facing a charge of negligent homicide in the fatal shooting of a popular Afghan physician should not have to face court-martial, a military hearing officer concluded Thursday.
In a strongly worded report, Lt. Col. Alva Hart found in favor of Sgt. 1st Class Walter Taylor on every point, saying there was insufficient evidence to support the charges against him. The shooting — following a confusing firefight in central Afghanistan — has raised questions about the strict rules of engagement to which U.S. soldiers are held in attempting to minimize civilian casualties.
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Hart found no fault with the rules of engagement or with Taylor. He said the 31-year-old noncommissioned officer had complied with rules as well as could be expected.
Several members of the convoy had opened fire on Hikmat's car long before Taylor began approaching it, he noted, and at least one of them had positively identified it as hostile.
"By driving into the firefight, the vehicle operated in a manner inconsistent with the prior experience of any of the testifying members of the [platoon]. Due to its unusual behavior, the potential threat posed by the vehicle as a possible [vehicle-borne improvised explosive device] should have increased in the minds of [platoon] members," the officer found.
"Therefore, I find that a reasonable person, under these circumstances, with the training provided, and knowledge gained through daily operations, would determine that the vehicle's actions were the prelude to an imminent use of force against" the platoon, he said.
In any case, he added, positive identification of hostile combatants "is based on a reasonable certainty … not a 100% mathematical certainty, and … requires balancing the risk of collateral damage with mission objectives and force protection."
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