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Reprimand Is Sentence For Officer at Abu Ghraib



By Josh White
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 30, 2007; Page A03

Army Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan, the only officer to face trial over
the Abu Ghraib detainee-abuse scandal, was issued a reprimand
yesterday by a military jury, a punishment that spares him all prison
time after he was convicted this week on one count of disobeying an
order.

The jury could have sentenced Jordan to as much as five years in
prison and ordered his dismissal from the Army. Instead, he received
one of the lightest punishments available. Jordan was convicted for
contacting other soldiers about the military's 2004 investigation into
the Abu Ghraib abuse after he was ordered not to discuss it with
anyone.

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan leaves military court after being
found guilty Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2007, in Fort Meade, Md., of willfully
disobeying a superior commissioned officer. A military court on
Tuesday acquitted Jordan of failing to control lower-ranking soldiers
who humiliated and abused detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq
during the autumn of 2003. (AP Photo/Steve Ruark) (Steve Ruark - AP) 
Originally accused of abuse and failing to supervise soldiers who
committed abuse, Jordan was exonerated Tuesday on all charges related
to the abuse of detainees, clearing him in a case that lasted more
than three years.

Jordan had repeatedly asserted that he was not in charge of the
facility and not responsible for the interrogation tactics used there.
In an interview yesterday, Jordan said that he thinks the jury panel
"did the fairest thing they could" and that he feels as though a "huge
weight has been lifted" off of his shoulders.

"Today was a vindication for my family, myself, and all the
professional soldiers and civilians at Abu Ghraib that did an
outstanding duty in such an austere environment that was, in essence,
undermanned, under-resourced and under constant attack," Jordan said
in an interview yesterday. "For the first time since the spring of
2004, I have some idea of a clear future."

Jordan said he plans to stay in the Army as an active-duty officer
while he weighs his options. He said yesterday that he wants to
someday become a grade-school teacher. In an earlier interview, Jordan
said he felt that the Army used him as a scapegoat in an effort to
show that it had put at least one officer on trial for abuse, and he
echoed those sentiments yesterday.

"When they're playing pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey, that's a fun game
until you're the donkey," Jordan said. "That's how I've felt these
last 3 1/2 years, that I was the donkey."

The final military trial related to the notorious abuse at Abu Ghraib
ended as a major victory for the defense team of Jordan, who at one
time faced a potential sentence of 16 1/2 years. The final sentence
was lighter than Jordan would have received under an administrative
punishment that an investigating officer recommended to commanders
late last year, which would have included a letter of reprimand and
dismissal from the Army. Prosecutors had long suggested that the case
be concluded as an administrative matter, but senior commanders
ignored that advice and pushed ahead with a public court-martial.

Jordan's punishment is lighter than the administrative punishment
received by Army Col. Thomas M. Pappas, who was the top officer at Abu
Ghraib and who admitted inappropriately approving the use of dogs in
interrogations. Pappas, who received immunity to testify in
courts-martial related to Abu Ghraib, received a reprimand and an
$8,000 fine.

A reprimand can be career-ending because it enters an officer's
permanent military file, meaning that Jordan probably would have had
trouble seeking a promotion to colonel, if he desired such a move.
Jordan and his attorneys said they plan to file a clemency petition to
Maj. Gen. Richard J. Rowe Jr., the commander of the Military District
of Washington. The jury's verdict needs to be confirmed by Rowe, who
can only lessen the punishment.

Different sets of prosecutors over the past three years have
recommended not proceeding with a court-martial for Jordan, and it was
evident during the weeklong trial why the lawyers had been hesitant to
bring the case to court. Jordan did not appear in any of the
photographs of abuse that surfaced in 2004, and no witnesses in the
trial said that Jordan ordered the abuse, specifically knew about it
or commanded the soldiers who were involved in it. The one charge that
stuck was Jordan's violation of an order from Maj. Gen. George Fay not
to discuss the abuse investigation, something Jordan has maintained he
did by mistake.

Brig. Gen. Louis Weber, the president of the jury, said his impression
from the trial was that Jordan is "a superb leader and officer."
Referring to the abuse-related charges, he added: "From my
perspective, the evidence that was presented didn't support the
allegations."

Capt. Samuel Spitzberg, a member of Jordan's defense team, said Army
commanders had expressed a desire to have a public airing of the Abu
Ghraib charges, but he noted that the case against Jordan aired little
about the prison or the abuse.

"For us it was never about Abu Ghraib; for us, it was about Lieutenant
Colonel Jordan," Spitzberg said. "We are pleased with the result
overall. It really is a vindication of his position throughout."


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/29/AR2007082900391.html?hpid=sec-nation



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2 wrongs don't make a right, but 3 rights make a left.