Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12
Results 21 to 25 of 25

Thread: USA PMC in AFG Faces Murder Charges...

  1. #21
    Council Member Uboat509's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    CO
    Posts
    681

    Default

    There are few things I detest more than trying someone in the media. I am sick to death of people using whatever scraps the media gets to convict or exonerate someone, often before the investigation is complete, much less the trial. The Haditha Marines were all guilty. John Murtha told us so, except that they have all been acquitted since then. OOOPs. Damn that due process.

    SFC W

  2. #22
    Council Member
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Posts
    4,021

    Default Limited facts admittedly

    and agreed with our U-boat skipper as to cases tried by or from the media.

    What the affidavit does do is affirm the proximate cause of the shooting as the lady's burns - the prosecution is stuck with that.

    About 10 minutes later, after a soldier said Loyd had been badly burned, Ayala pointed a pistol at Salam's head and shot him dead, according to court records.

    Loyd had second- and third-degree burns over 60 percent of her body.....
    The photos of the burns - and the resultant scarring - are probably pretty bad. So, I'd use them in both plea bargaining and at trial. What other defense does the guy have, IF those are the facts ?

    Would be better if perp #1 (the Afghan) had taken off and was shot in hot pursuit. But, we have to deal with the situation we have, not what we'd like to have.

    A lot of this depends on the guy's prior history - is he a nice guy or not - and what added facts come up from the defense discovery of evidence before trial, which we probably will not hear about.

  3. #23
    Council Member MikeF's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Posts
    1,177

    Default I'm with Uboat

    I have not read the affidavit, but I'll throw some considerations out there that have not been addressed. These are factors we would look at with our own soldiers. I'm not advocating any verdict of guilty or not guilty just describing other factors that must be understood in context while we drink coffee in our comfortable air-conditioned homes while typing our thoughts in this blog.

    1. Did the shooter perceive an imminent threat? According to our rules of engagement, one has the right to self-defense. The victim does not have to be armed at the time-remember his initial weapon was a can of gasoline. Had he been thoroughly searched as a suicide bomber or even for something as small as a keyless entry for a car that could have been used as a detonation device for an IED?

    Rage aside, if the shooter honestly perceived that threat, then his action MAYBE justified IMHO. Remember, this is not a beat cop in downtown chicago-this is a war zone. The shooter did not rage and kill 10 civilians.

    Or maybe he commited murder. I dunno, but if I think it's worth considering.

    2. Does this incident hurt our COIN effort? It depends. For the local village, maybe not. Maybe the local villagers actually feel a bit safer now that a thug is dead. Maybe along with his facination with burning American anthropologist, he molest little boys and cuts off women's hands in extreme implementation of Shariah law. Maybe the world is a better place with him dead. Maybe not. We simply don't know. As far as the broader IO message, it depends on how the actions the USG and Afghan gov't take versus the Taliban/AQ media. Depends on the spin. Maybe the due process of a fair trial will verify that we live by the values that we preach.

    As I stated above, I don't have an opinion just wanted to play Devil's Advocate to further discussion into an important issue. Again, I'm with Uboat; I think far too often we assume guilty until proven innocent.

    v/r

    Mike

  4. #24
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Wherever the needs of the Army take me . . .
    Posts
    9

    Default Since I'm not a lawyer . . .

    What effect to local laws have on the actions of the PMC?

    For example, would defending the honor of a woman be a protected act?

    Just curious.

  5. #25
    Council Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    156

    Default Ayala Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter

    This, from a statement today (3 Feb 09) from the United States Attorney's Office:
    Don Michael Ayala, a civilian contractor stationed in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty today to voluntary manslaughter in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, in the death of Abdul Salam while on patrol in Chehel Gazi, Afghanistan, on November 4, 2008 .... The maximum sentence Ayala could receive is 15 years .... U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton set a sentencing date of May 8, 2009.

Similar Threads

  1. National Guard shooting in NOLA
    By AdamG in forum Politics In the Rear
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 02-07-2008, 03:33 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •