Lynndie R. England

Lynndie R. England, the "U.S. Army private facing a court-martial for being photographed with naked Iraqi prisoners says she was following orders to create psychological pressure on them." 

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Laura Parker, in the May 25, 2004, USA Today, reports that "Attorneys for Pfc. Lynndie England, the U.S. soldier who was photographed holding a leash around the neck of an Iraqi detainee at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison, will ask that her statements to investigators be thrown out because she was interrogated after she had asked for a lawyer.

"Rose Mary Zapor, the Denver lawyer heading England's defense, said England was questioned by military investigators three times -- twice in January and again in May. 'The three statements were taken illegally, because she had invoked her right to counsel,' Zapor said in a telephone interview Monday."

"In photographs that have been shown worldwide, England, 21, is seen smiling, cigarette in her mouth, as she leans forward and points at the genitals of a naked, hooded Iraqi. Another photo taken at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison shows her holding a leash that encircles the neck of a naked Iraqi man lying on his side." 

England "told KCNC-TV in Denver on [May 11, 2004] that her superiors gave her specific instructions on how to pose for the photos. Asked who gave the orders, she would say only, 'Persons in my chain of command.' ... The interview was taped Tuesday at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where England, a military reservist from West Virginia, met with one of a team of Denver lawyers who have volunteered to take her case." 

Attorney Giorgio Ra'Shadd, a former Army lawyer who met with England, "said she shouldn't be used as a scapegoat by the military. ... 'You don't see my client doing anything abusive at all,' Ra'Shadd said in an interview. 'I think she was ordered to smile.'"

"Ra'Shadd said England was pulled into the situations by intelligence agents who subverted the military chain of command. He said they used England to humiliate the men being photographed so they could show the pictures to more important prisoners and threaten them with the same treatment." 

CNN reports that "England faces a military court-martial that includes charges such as conspiracy to maltreat prisoners and assault consummated by battery, and could face punishment ranging from a reprimand to more than 15 years in prison. ... No date has been set for a hearing in the case." 

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The Associated Press's William L. Holmes writes May 13, 2004, that "England's Lawyer says Army uncooperative."

SourceWatch Resources

 * Abu Ghraib: Photographic Evidence of Brutality
 * Abu Ghraib: Congressional Investigation
 * Abu Ghraib: Charges Against Military Personnel