It is my act, my hand, my heart: I beseech your lordships to be merciful to a broken reed.
Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626), English philosopher
It seems to me on the surface that the military judge that abruptly tossed out a guilty plea and declared a mistrial in the court-martial of Pfc. Lynndie R. England, may have done the right thing.
England does not sound like the sharpest tool in the shed, which is no excuse, but try to be the one to tell pumped up soldiers not to mistreat enemy combatants. I am not saying for even one second, that she should not be punished, but maybe her punishment she be along the lines of reading and community service, so that she is not just punished, but she learns something out of the process. Maybe gain knowledge to pass along to her newborn child.
The judge, Col. James Pohl, dismissed the jury in the sentencing phase of her case and sent the year-old matter back to a lieutenant general who will weigh a range of options, including starting over or dismissing the case.
I find myself feeling very sympathetic toward England in this case.
3 comments:
I was surprised that when her commanding officer, under oath, contradicted England's statements (he claimed he ordered to do various things that he felt were consistent with army policy; her statement was that she knowlingly acted against policy in concert with that officer and others) that the judge would throw out her "guilty" plea -- but I guess one person does not a conspiracy make.
One knows that punishing the guilt does not undo the crime, but we nonetheless do so for various reasons (deterrent to criminal or others, satisfaction of revenge for victim or survivors of victim, etc.)... but you're right; she seems like she's a little lost in all this.
Of course, so do all crazy serial killers.
Not to compare the two.
I tend to agree that she is not that sharp and it is easy for me to sympathize with her.
During war I don't expect people to be on their best behavior. It doesn't excuse it or mean that she does not deserve punishment, but it is a mitigating factor.
If she would have run into some of those prisoners on the street she might have stuck a bullet in their head instead of a dog collar on their neck.
This makes me feel a bit like John Kerry, but I tend to agree with all of you. However, I would rather see Rumsfeld and our attorney general on the hot seat than Ms. England.
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