Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
An Officer, His Punishment
Aired December 12, 2003 - 06:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An Army lieutenant colonel will learn today whether he'll be court-martialed for the way he questioned Iraqi detainees.
CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh is following the story in Tikrit, and he joins us live right now.
Alphonso -- is the hearing under way yet?
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, the decision has not come down yet, but we do expect the commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division to hand down his decision on Lieutenant West's case in a matter of hours.
Now, as you mentioned a little bit earlier, Lieutenant Colonel Allen West has been charged or is accused of using his gun and firing it (AUDIO GAP) subordinate soldiers to beat the detainee, because an interrogation with them was not going as planned.
Now, West admits to the charges, because he says the detainee had information on an assassination plot against him and other U.S. forces. West said he did these actions to save American lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. COL. ALLEN WEST, U.S. ARMY: I love soldiers, and I love the fact that that for 20 years I've been a soldier. And it's been an honor to serve my country.
MAJ. GEN. RAYMOND OBIERNO, 4TH INFANTRY DIVISION: As a leader, you have extra responsibility on you, and that's really the issue here. Because as a leader, what's your responsibility, as a leader? And so, that's what I've got to think through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAN MARSH: Now, you probably just heard there also the commanding general himself, Raymond Odierno, Major General Odierno, also giving his opinion on the case.
Now, he says it's very, very difficult decision, because he faces three choices. He may decide to do nothing.
He may decide to refer the case for trial for court martial, and if found guilty or found in violation, Allen West could face 11 years in prison. The third option is what the investigating officer is recommending. It's called an Article 15. Now, that's an administrative punishment, and it has a wide range of options. Lieutenant Colonel Allen West could be docked pay. They could take away some of his rank, or he could be held in barracks for a certain period of time.
Ultimately, West says he understands that his military leadership career is over. And we're expecting that decision to come down in about five or six hours. Of course, we'll let you know.
LIN: Alphonso, what would qualify him for a lesser punishment than a court martial? I mean, why would they consider a lesser-degree sentence?
VAN MARSH: Well, that's a very good question. What we're hearing and understanding from this viewpoint is that the commanding general does basically have those three choices, but when he's making these three choices, he faces a considerable amount of pressure.
For example, if he does nothing, a lot of people would say, OK, well, the Army condones these unsavory interrogation techniques. And if he goes ahead and punishes West, it requires him to go through a court martial.
Soldiers I'm talking to here say that sends out a really, really bad message, saying that the top military brass doesn't understand what the soldiers are going through in trying to stop attacks on U.S. forces, and that it's a very, very unconventional war that they're going through, and perhaps it's time to change their interrogation methods in this very unusual war -- Carol.
LIN: All right, it not only sets a precedent for future interrogation tactics, but certainly a strong message around the world about the U.S. coalition tactics there. Thank you very much -- Alphonso Van Marsh reporting live by videophone from Tikrit.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired December 12, 2003 - 06:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An Army lieutenant colonel will learn today whether he'll be court-martialed for the way he questioned Iraqi detainees.
CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh is following the story in Tikrit, and he joins us live right now.
Alphonso -- is the hearing under way yet?
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, the decision has not come down yet, but we do expect the commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division to hand down his decision on Lieutenant West's case in a matter of hours.
Now, as you mentioned a little bit earlier, Lieutenant Colonel Allen West has been charged or is accused of using his gun and firing it (AUDIO GAP) subordinate soldiers to beat the detainee, because an interrogation with them was not going as planned.
Now, West admits to the charges, because he says the detainee had information on an assassination plot against him and other U.S. forces. West said he did these actions to save American lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. COL. ALLEN WEST, U.S. ARMY: I love soldiers, and I love the fact that that for 20 years I've been a soldier. And it's been an honor to serve my country.
MAJ. GEN. RAYMOND OBIERNO, 4TH INFANTRY DIVISION: As a leader, you have extra responsibility on you, and that's really the issue here. Because as a leader, what's your responsibility, as a leader? And so, that's what I've got to think through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAN MARSH: Now, you probably just heard there also the commanding general himself, Raymond Odierno, Major General Odierno, also giving his opinion on the case.
Now, he says it's very, very difficult decision, because he faces three choices. He may decide to do nothing.
He may decide to refer the case for trial for court martial, and if found guilty or found in violation, Allen West could face 11 years in prison. The third option is what the investigating officer is recommending. It's called an Article 15. Now, that's an administrative punishment, and it has a wide range of options. Lieutenant Colonel Allen West could be docked pay. They could take away some of his rank, or he could be held in barracks for a certain period of time.
Ultimately, West says he understands that his military leadership career is over. And we're expecting that decision to come down in about five or six hours. Of course, we'll let you know.
LIN: Alphonso, what would qualify him for a lesser punishment than a court martial? I mean, why would they consider a lesser-degree sentence?
VAN MARSH: Well, that's a very good question. What we're hearing and understanding from this viewpoint is that the commanding general does basically have those three choices, but when he's making these three choices, he faces a considerable amount of pressure.
For example, if he does nothing, a lot of people would say, OK, well, the Army condones these unsavory interrogation techniques. And if he goes ahead and punishes West, it requires him to go through a court martial.
Soldiers I'm talking to here say that sends out a really, really bad message, saying that the top military brass doesn't understand what the soldiers are going through in trying to stop attacks on U.S. forces, and that it's a very, very unconventional war that they're going through, and perhaps it's time to change their interrogation methods in this very unusual war -- Carol.
LIN: All right, it not only sets a precedent for future interrogation tactics, but certainly a strong message around the world about the U.S. coalition tactics there. Thank you very much -- Alphonso Van Marsh reporting live by videophone from Tikrit.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
