Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Abu Ghraib Dog Handler Found Guilty

(AP) WASHINGTON A jury found an Army dog handler guilty Tuesday of abusing detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison by terrifying them with a military dog, allegedly for his own amusement.

Sgt. Michael J. Smith, 24, was found guilty of six of 13 counts. He had faced the stiffest potential sentence of any soldier charged so far in the Abu Ghraib scandal.

He was charged with 13 offenses and faces up to 24 1/2 years in prison if convicted on all counts. The seven jurors - four officers and three enlisted soldiers - began deliberating Friday after four days of testimony.

The government contends that Smith, of the 523rd Military Police Detachment, Fort Riley, Kan., used his dog to intimidate five prisoners for fun and competed with another canine handler trying to make detainees soil themselves.

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