Akbar Sentenced to Death for Grenade Attack

[Fly Navy]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,154969,00.html

Akbar Sentenced to Death for Grenade Attack

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Associated Press

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — A military jury sentenced a soldier to death Thursday for a grenade and rifle attack on his own comrades during the opening days of the Iraq invasion, a barrage that killed two officers and that prosecutors said was driven by religious extremism.

Sgt. Hasan Akbar (search), who gave a brief, barely audible apology hours earlier, stood at attention between his lawyers as the verdict was delivered. He showed no emotion.

He could have been sentenced to life in prison with or without parole for the early morning March 2003 attack, which also wounded 14 fellow members of the Army's 101st Airborne Division (search) at Camp Pennsylvania in Kuwait.

The 15-person military jury, which last week took just two and a half hours to convict Akbar of premeditated murder and attempted premeditated murder, deliberated for about seven hours in the sentencing phase. After jurors reached a verdict, they voted on whether to reconsider the decision after one juror asked that they do so.

The sentence will be automatically appealed. If Akbar is executed, it would be by lethal injection.

"I want to apologize for the attack that occurred. I felt that my life was in jeopardy, and I had no other options. I also want to ask you for forgiveness," Akbar told the jury before it deliberated in the sentencing phase.

Akbar, 34, spoke for less than a minute, delivering an unsworn statement that could not be cross-examined. He spoke in such a low voice that even prosecutors sitting nearby had trouble hearing, with one lawyer even cupping his ear.

While the defense contends Akbar was too mentally ill to plan the attack, they have never disputed that he threw grenades into troop tents in the early morning darkness and then fired on soldiers in the ensuing chaos. Army Capt. Chris Seifert (search), 27, and Air Force Maj. Gregory Stone (search), 40, were killed.

Prosecutors say Akbar launched the attack at his camp — days before the soldiers were to move into Iraq — because he was concerned about U.S. troops killing fellow Muslims in the Iraq war.

"He is a hate-filled, ideologically driven murderer," chief prosecutor Lt. Col. Michael Mulligan said. He added that Akbar wrote in his diary in 1997, "My life will not be complete unless America is destroyed."

Akbar is the first American since the Vietnam era to be prosecuted on charges of murdering a fellow soldier during wartime.

Defense attorney Maj. David Coombs told jurors that a sentence of life without parole would allow Akbar to be treated for mental illness and possibly rehabilitated.

"Death is an absolute punishment, a punishment of last resort," Coombs said.

A defense psychiatrist testified that although Akbar was legally sane and understood the consequences of his attack, he suffered from forms of paranoia and schizophrenia.

If given a death sentence, Akbar would join five others on the military's death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. The last U.S. military execution was in 1961.

 

[A4sForever]

" .... If given a death sentence, Akbar would join five others on the military's death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. The last U.S. military execution was in 1961."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1961 ??? Incredible. Let us hope justice is swift and true in this instance .....

 

[PropStop]

Yeah, this guy seriously needs to die. I can't think of any reason to keep him around. Although, I bet he would get is a$$ kicked if he were introduced to the general prison population.

Why can't we use the firing squad any more? The gov't could sell tickets for it and may millions. I'd buy two or three tickets.

hate is a strong word for me. There aren't many things I hate in this world. A traitor, however, is one of those things.

 

[Grant]

"Defense attorney Maj. David Coombs told jurors that a sentence of life without parole would allow Akbar to be treated for mental illness and possibly rehabilitated."

What good does rehabilitation do if he's gonna spend the rest of his life in prison anyway? Rehabilitation is only worthwhile if the individual will be released at some point. Ya know, whats the point?

 

[gaijin6423]

If you check out the other military prisoners on death row, you'll find a former Marine Sgt named Quintinilla(sp?). He was convicted of premeditated murder and sentenced to death in 1997-98 for walking into the MALS-39 XO's office, shooting him in the chest, and then shooting the CO. The CO lived, thanks to some pretty heroic actions by a Gunny from Admin, but the XO didn't make it.

I have no sympathy for either Akbar or Quintinilla, but I feel for the people from the 101st. I reported to MALS-39 about 4 months after the shooting, and it was like something had been cut out of it. I can only imagine what those guys went through, with having one of their own kill/wound so many. I will say that, having been a brig chaser for the douchebag at Pendleton, it was pretty hard not to beat him with my flashlight, and even several hours after having taken the cuffs off of him, I still felt like my hands were dirty from leading him around.

 

[squeeze]

They should have never taken Akbar alive. I think in a similar situation, I would've popped him a couple times in the chest. "going for a weapon" or somesuch. the guy doesn't deserve to live and honestly, he should have never made it past that night of the actual attack.

 

[Schnugg]

Sad to think we'll keep him alive, healthy and well fed, in prison awaiting an execution that may never occur.

 

[pennst8]

Maybe he'll just do everyone a favor and off himself.

I've never understood why it takes so long to execute someone on death row. Honestly give them enough time for one appeal (2 years?) and then if there are not issues that would clear them... just do it.

 

[bunk22]

I believe in Singapore, once a death sentence is given it's carried out in 30 days. There's no mistaken identity here, this guy is trash, a traitor and should be executed as soon as possible.

 

[KBayDog]

I believe in Singapore, once a death sentence is given it's carried out in 30 days.

No messing around in the country that just legalized medicinal use of chewing gum, which was previously banned.

 

[Mayday]

Not to mention, as we all know, public caning of grafiti artists.

 

[H20man]

Singapore- Disneyland with a Death Penalty.


back on topic, i believe appeals processes are a little nutty, with what pennst8 said, appeals are lasting several years with more than one appeal, a little long if you ask me. Just costing the courts and prison more money.

 

[A4sForever]

They should have never taken Akbar alive ..... .... he should have never made it past that night of the actual attack.

That certainly would have fit my appreciation of :

Let us hope justice is swift and true in this instance .....

 

[Cate]

i believe appeals processes are a little nutty, with what pennst8 said, appeals are lasting several years with more than one appeal, a little long if you ask me. Just costing the courts and prison more money.

I think a lot of people feel that way, and then wouldn't feel that way if they were the ones facing death. I personally have no problem with the judicial system taking plenty of time to consider things and confirm that they've made the right decision before making someone permanently dead.

That having been said, if this trial was as solid as it looks from the outside, this guy's execution will be a testament to the American justice system: not just taken out by a vigilante who shoots him in the head and leaves him a potential martyr, this guy has been tried before a jury of his peers, convicted on undisputed facts, and will be justifiably executed for his crime. I'm still anti-death penalty on principle, but even I'll admit that you won't find a much cleaner death penalty case than this one.

 

[red_stang65]

I know the guilty verdict was very much deserved, but I'm still uncomfortable with the death penalty.

this guy's execution will be a testament to the American justice system: not just taken out by a vigilante who shoots him in the head and leaves him a potential martyr, this guy has been tried before a jury of his peers, convicted on undisputed facts, and will be justifiably executed for his crime.

Wouldn't killing him through the State give other fundamentalists more reason to hate us--as if they feel they need more, but i'm sure you get the point--? And as far as rehabilitation for those on life sentences, I believe there is something to the idea of redeeming one's spiritual self after the act, despite whether or not he is let back into society.

I hope I don't come off as preachy or anything--not the goal--just trying to add a varrying opinion to the post.