Abu Ghraib Officer Escapes Abuse Charges

Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan Acquitted Of Most Charges But Found Guilty Of Disobeying An Order

(CBS/AP)  A military court Tuesday acquitted a U.S. Army officer of failing to control U.S. soldiers accused of abusing detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison, but it found him guilty of disobeying an order.

Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan was the only officer and the last of 12 defendants to go to trial in the Abu Ghraib 2003 scandal.

The allegations of detainee abuse at the U.S.-run prison first came to light with the release of photos of U.S. soldiers smiling while detainees, often naked, were held in painful and humiliating positions at the prison. Jordan, 51, never appeared in the inflammatory photos, but he was accused of fostering a climate conducive to abuse.

The jury of nine colonels and one brigadier general deliberated for about seven hours before issuing its verdicts Tuesday.

It acquitted Jordan of three counts: cruelty and maltreatment for subjecting detainees to forced nudity and intimidation by dogs; dereliction of a duty to properly train and supervise soldiers in humane interrogation rules; and failing to obey a lawful general order by ordering dogs used for interrogations without higher approval.

Jordan was found guilty of disobeying a general's order not to talk to others about the investigation into the abuse.

“It’s ironic but not entirely surprising given the military make-up of the jury that the only charge of which he was found guilty had to do with him disobeying an order not to discuss the matter with others,” said CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen.

Jordan faces a maximum sentence of five years. The court planned to begin the sentencing hearing Tuesday afternoon.

Attorneys for the government and the defense declined to comment.

Jordan was director of Abu Ghraib's interrogation center from mid-September until mid-November 2003. He was also the senior officer inside a prison cellblock on Nov. 24, 2003, during at least part of an episode that included a strip-search for smuggled weapons and a dog brought in to intimidate a detainee during questioning in his cell.

The prosecutor said in his closing argument Monday that Jordan was not court-martialed for what he did at Abu Ghraib, but for what he did not do.

"He didn't train. He didn't supervise," Lt. Col. John P. Tracy told the military panel.

The defense said Jordan was outside the command chain and therefore not responsible for the military intelligence soldiers who interrogated detainees and the military police who guarded them.

"There is no evidence of a failure to train and supervise, no evidence of failure to ensure compliance," Maj. Kris Poppe said in his closing for the defense.

The verdict on the allegations involving the Abu Ghraib abuses effectively ends the legal phase of the scandal, reports CBS News Radio correspondent Peter Maer.

Eleven soldiers have been convicted of crimes in connection the Abu Ghraib scandal. The longest sentence, 10 years, was given to former Cpl. Charles Graner Jr. in 2005.

Lynndie England, who was the most recognizable face from the Abu Ghraib photos, was sentenced to three years.

[Krazcarl]

We send men to kill and get upset by the manner they do it. These guys were seeking information that would save other americans their goal noble their method criminal. WAR IS HELL PERIOD

[phil-in-fin]

Sometimes it is difficult to find the evidence that traces a straight line back to the person in command.

A friend of mine was killed in an unarmed combat display for civilians. His fight-partner stabbed him with a supposed rubber (flexible) knife that cut his heart in two.

In five days they did six shows together flawlessly, and then, as always, during the seventh and last show, when we were all completely exhausted, they made a mistake.

Now, you must ask yourself, how could a rubber knife do that?

Well, it wasn''t a rubber knife; it was a real knife. The officer in charge often screamed at us that he wanted the display to be "as real as possible," and when he was informed that my friend and his fight-partner were using a real knife to add to the realism, he did nothing.

Of course, when my friend was stabbed and he bled to death internally, we all blamed the officer in charge for not ordering these two men to put away the real knife.

The inquiry blamed the two for not following orders.

[agnim]

"Abu Ghraib Officer Escapes Abuse Charges"

Whew!

Thank gad he is White and only responsible for TORTURING HUMANS and not fight dogs.

[cmp271]

This Lt. Col. is guilty of everything his subordinates are. He allowed it by not doing his job and turning a blind eye to it. He is being protected by the "Officer elite" with the others left out to dry.

His leadership set the stage for the abuse to occur. He should be held responsible for their behavior.

[atpay1]

It says a lot about the military and life the average Joe and the average soldier pay with their lives while the rich and the elite get away with murder!! Rumsfeld & Cheney and the Generals who approved of Abu Graib paid nothing, got no punishment!! It''s hard to beleive that the guilty soldiers went to Iraq with dog leashes, collars and hoods !!! Someone told them what to do and how to do it!! The military then wonders why recruitment is down even $25,000 won''t buy more recruits...look how the soldiers are left to swing in the wind !!

[likeitis5050]

bulls*it. The higher up you go, the less severe the consequences and it should be exactly the opposite. This is just another example of how the military protects itself, even at the expense of the lowest in rank who actually have no choice but to follow the orders. But, it''s one more smear on an administration determined to look the other way when the c...rap starts hitting the fan.

[feelfree1]

jarheadcwo3,

Good points. What''s more, men like Colonel Thomas Pappas, General Miller, Donald Rumsfeld, and Alberto Gonzales, are the men who are ultimately responsible for these torure programs.

I am in favor of granting leniency to any underling who provides evidence leading to the conviction of any of these men.

[jarheadcwo3]

I agree with the prosecution that he was guilty of what he did not do.

It does not matter if the lower ranking personnel were assigned to him or not. As a Lieutenant Colonel in the armed forces of the US he has a sworn duty to provide leadership and set an example for all of those soldiers that are junior to him in rank.

Military courtesy and custom require that all personnel subordinate in rank render a salute to all senior officers, not just those to which unit they may be assigned.

I hope he is dismissed for the good of the service and reduced in rank.

Charles H.
CWO-3 USMC (ret)

[norcalruss]

The guys on trial now are just the scapegoats, as usual, for the higher-ups who don%u2019t have the spine to admit they planned gross violations of the Geneva Convention. I think this includes some of the Generals, Ronald Dumsfeld, and Chicken Hawk Cheney. They should all be on trial, not the lowly enlisted man carrying out their garbage.

[feelfree1]

Correction-

Should be: "By the way, I don''''t think that this man is guilty of "Failing To Control Soldiers" or of "Disobeying An Order", because I believe that he was instructed to have his men torture prisoners by men like General Miller, who imported his torture programs from Guantanimo Bay to Abu Ghraib."