US soldier convicted of maltreating Afghan detainee News
US soldier convicted of maltreating Afghan detainee

[JURIST] A US court-martial Saturday found Army Specialist James Hayes guilty of mistreating detainees [US Central Command press release] in Afghanistan at the end of a brief trial [JURIST report]. The court-martial which convicted Hayes on one count of conspiracy to maltreat and two counts of maltreatment demoted him to the rank of private and sentenced him to four months in detention without pay. Hayes, accused of punching detainees in the chest, arms and shoulders at a base in Uruzgan in July, was held at the main US base at Bagram pending transfer to a detention center in Kuwait. Sergeant K.D. Myrick was also accused of striking two detainees, and will face court martial on January 30 [US Central Command press release]. Reuters has more.

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