Army to open criminal probe of Tillman death

[Cooley Hurd]

Pentagon orders criminal investigation into Pat Tillman's death

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Defense Department inspector general has directed the Army to open a criminal investigation into the death of former NFL star Pat Tillman, CNN learned on Saturday.

Initial reports said Tillman, 27, was shot and killed by Taliban forces during an ambush on April 22, 2004. An investigation later revealed that fellow soldiers shot Tillman, thinking he was part of an enemy force firing at them.

Tillman's family demanded to know why his uniform and armor were burned a day after he was killed and why they were not immediately told he might have been killed by fellow soldiers.

A 2005 report from Brig. Gen. Gary Jones contained sworn statements from soldiers involved in the incident who said they burned the items because they had taken pictures of the scene, walked around and knew how Tillman had been killed.

Initially, Tillman's blood-covered uniform and armor were said to have been destroyed because they were considered a biohazard.
</snip>

[bluestateguy]

1. Of whom?

Of a possible cover up? I would be strongly skeptical of a criminal investigation of the soldiers in his unit. If he was killed by friendly fire in a combat situation I hardly think that that should be a criminal offense, unless some malice can be proven.

[Pavulon]

28. I agree

unless gross misconduct played a role the investigation is probably of the people who filed false post incident reports.

[Tight_rope]

38. Is the Army going to do the same for all the others who died from friendly

free. I hope so. I would like to believe that this is not just because he was a white male with a promising football career, who choose to be a hero and died for lies.

There should be no special treatment in this case.

[brentspeak]

40. "...just because he was a white male w/ a promising footbll career"???

You actually believe that's the reason why the Army is launching an investigation?

Every indication is that the Army was trying to bury this story, not investigate it. Only the effort of his parents got any wheels turning.

[Mabus]

2. Link to CNNwire story: "Pentagon orders criminal investigation into Pat..

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/03/04/saturday/index.html

Pentagon orders criminal investigation into Pat Tillman's death

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Defense Department inspector general has directed the Army Criminal Investigative Division (CID) to open a criminal investigation into the death of former NFL star Pat Tillman, CNN learned Saturday.

Tillman was killed in a 2004 friendly fire incident in Afghanistan while serving in an Army Ranger unit. (Posted at 4:15 p.m.)

[TexasProgresive]

4. Friendly fire is not always friendly

Sometimes a person with a grudge uses the heat of battle to redress supposed wrongs.

[spooky3]

14. A friend of mine who served in Vietnam estimated

that 30% of fatalities attributed to "friendly fire" were due to just what you say.

[roseBudd]

17. It's called fragging n/t

[Cooley Hurd]

6. Thanks for the link!

I've updated the OP...

[Mabus]

7. Great, glad I could help

I went to cnn.com and found it. Out of respect for you and in an attempt to reduce the number of duplicate story threads I posted the here.

Thank you for the original head's up.

[leftchick]

3. The Pentagon is doing the probe

lots of luck getting any truth.

[jus_the_facts]

10. Indeed...

[mirandapriestly]

12. yeah, as soon as I saw the Pentagon was in charge

I thought we'll never get the truth. I thought they were somehow involved with the cover up

[RazzleDazzle]

36. well, they've already framed it so you know what's coming --

"criminal negilgence" is what they're supposed to be investigating.

If they're looking for NEGLIGENCE, this is yet another whitewash.

Yawn.

These asses are getting so damned predictable it almost makes watching them boring.

[0007]

5. Wow! Maybe they set Tillman up as a sacrifice to be the Golden

poster boy for the recruiters. The Pentagon was caught in one of many lies.

Now perhaps the friendly fire wasn't so friendly, 'eh?

[Karenina]

8. Why now?

[Up2Late]

11. Looks to me like another case of manufacturing outrage to distract from...

...from all the real scandals that they don't want the media to focus on.

I guess they can't find anymore missing Blond girls.

[Arkansas Granny]

13. Yeah. When this one hits the corporate media, they will run

with it to the exclusion of a lot of news that really needs to be reported. What our government has done to capitalize on the death of this man is criminal.

[girl gone mad]

24. I don't think so.

There's always been more to the story.

Pat Tillman was against the war in Iraq and was a vocal Kerry supporter at the time.

Even if it was simply a case of friendly fire, nothing more, the fact that the government waited so long to report the true circumstances surrounding his death is a big deal. At the very least, they covered up the truth so that they could use Tillman's brief military career as pro-Iraq-war propoganda, something Tillman himself would have been against.

[arcane1]

32. that's what I was thinking, too...

a celebrity in the military, fighting in yet speaking against the war, could easily become bad PR for those who sent him there. Thus, it would be no surprise to learn that he had a bulls-eye on his head for not keeping his mouth shut

ESPECIALLY when you factor in the way they "Jessica Lynched" him after his death

[0007]

43. I think Tillman's parents have been asking some tough questions,

that no one can answer.

[DainBramaged]

9. Interesting it has taken this long

http://www.think-aboutit.com/conspiracy/FAMILYDEMANDSTH...

As she pores through testimony from three previous Army investigations into the killing of her son, former football star Pat Tillman, by his fellow Army Rangers last year in Afghanistan, she hopes that a new inquiry launched in August by the Pentagon’s inspector general finally will answer the family’s questions:

Were witnesses allowed to change their testimony on key details, as alleged by one investigator? Why did internal documents on the case, such as the initial casualty report, include false information? When did top Pentagon officials know that Tillman’s death was caused by friendly fire, and why did they delay for five weeks before informing his family?

[izzybeans]

15. Typical military death story. My father still has no idea how is brother

died during vietnam era, though he was supposedly not ever sent there. He has two official versions and one unofficial if I remember correctly. All I know is he called B.S. on this story on day one.

[burythehatchet]

16. "Pentagon Orders" is all you need to know..move along

[Pirate Smile]

18. CNN: Army to open criminal probe of Tillman death

Army to open criminal probe of Tillman death
Friendly fire blamed in death of former NFL player in Afghanistan

From Barbara Starr
CNN Washington Bureau

Saturday, March 4, 2006; Posted: 4:48 p.m. EST (21:48 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Defense Department inspector general has directed the Army to open a criminal investigation into the death of former NFL star Pat Tillman, CNN learned on Saturday.

In May of 2004 the Army said that Tillman, 27, was "probably" killed by gunfire from his own unit during a ground convoy assault on April 22. The incident occurred not far from Khowst, Afghanistan, near the eastern border with Pakistan, the Army said.

An investigation found that fellow soldiers shot Tillman, thinking he was part of an enemy force firing at them

"While there was no one specific finding of fault, the investigation indicated that Cpl. Tillman probably died of friendly fire while his unit was in combat with enemy forces," said Lt. Gen. Philip Kensinger Jr., of the Army's Special Operations Command, during the 2004 news conference.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/03/04/tillman/index.html

[The Backlash Cometh]

19. Thank God. Someone is showing responsibility.

Now if we can only count on the investigation being objective.

[Poll_Blind]

20. There's a very disturbing implication for you...

The military doesn't open criminal probes, generally, for this sort of thing. I have no idea what caused them to open this probe but there must be some rather compelling material.

PB

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

22. "Pay no attention to the investigation behind the curtain."

Fluff.

[Kagemusha]

23. I'm really curious about that too.

You're right, it's not only very unusual, but it's very hard to convict on something like this if there's even a remotely reasonable defense that it was an honest mistake.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

21. No thanks to anyone in the Army,

the Pentagon, the Congress, or the White House.

Tillman's parents got on this, and were relentless in their pursuit of the truth. If the lying bastards in the government had their way, this bullshit "hero" story would still be out there.

Can you say "Jessica Lynch"?

"...Tillman PROBABLY died of friendly fire..."? They can't stop lying, can they?

[rocktivity]

27. Is it the coverup that's the crime? Or is there something else going on?

An inspector general ordered the Army Criminal Investigative Division to determine if Tillman's death resulted from negligent homicide...

...(S)oldiers involved in the incident...said they burned...Tillman's blood-covered uniform and armor...because they had taken pictures of the scene, walked around and knew how Tillman had been killed. Initially, it (was) said (they had) been destroyed because they were considered a biohazard.

If the soliders truly mistook Tillman for the enemy, that's accidental at best and incompetent at worst. And if the soliders engaged in criminal behavior by covering it up, that's deliberate conspiracy and obstruction. Either wasy, negligent homicide does not fit into the picture. And is burning a dead solider's equipment on the spot standard operating procedure?


rocknation

[Rose Siding]

25. Can't tell if they're investigating the circumstances of his death or

a cover-up of it being a "friendly fire" death.

[HuffleClaw]

26. ok, they'll make this into a HUGE story but are still hushing up

the many cases of rape we've heard about?

[wtmusic]

29. Where's the investigation into 15 homicides at Abu Ghraib

Oops, I forgot! Those were BROWN people, and they didn't play football!

[RamboLiberal]

30. WP Story has Army looking in to Negligent Homicide

I've always wondered if may be some members of Tillman's unit found this guy too gung ho. You know even on some NFL teams some guys resent a guy who wants to go too hard.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20...

The Army is opening a criminal investigation into the friendly fire death of former NFL player Pat Tillman to probe whether negligent homicide charges should be brought against members of his Ranger unit who killed him in Afghanistan nearly two years ago, according to defense officials.

Pentagon officials notified Tillman's family on Friday that a Defense Department Inspector General's review of the case had determined there was enough evidence to warrant a fresh look, after initial investigations that were characterized by secrecy, mishandling of evidence, and delays in reporting crucial facts about what had happened.

<snip>

Mary Tillman said Saturday that she believes evidence of a crime has existed all along, and that the family's repeated calls for a criminal investigation were ignored until now. "It is completely obvious that this should have been done from the very beginning," she said. "The military has had every opportunity to do the right thing and they haven't. They knew all along that something was seriously wrong and they just wanted to cover it up."

Patrick Tillman Sr. expressed skepticism that the new investigation will yield additional answers. "I think it's another step," he said. "But if you send investigators to reinvestigate an investigation that was falsified in the first place, what do you think you're going to get?"

[Mr_Spock]

31. It's about time

.

[Stinky The Clown]

33. I just heard this on the radio .......

..... another case of the truth giving lie to the uttered words of the criminals in power.

I guess they felt if they painted him as a hero and feted his valiant demise, his parents would go quietly into the night. It is their quiet persistence that kept the burner up on this kettle.

[Schema Thing]

34. I'd sure love to hear what his brother, who was there...

has to say about all of this.

[Rose Siding]

35. Barbara Star on CNN sounded like a member of the administration

when she reported this. The entire report was read like damage control for her work-a-day pals. It was all:

'the army is just trying to do the right thing' (NOT that they screwed up and didn't handle it correctly in ANY of the proceeding investigations)

and ....'the Tillman's have been very vocal because he received so much media attention' (could it have had to do with them being willing to use whatever means available to help them find the truth, as any of us would have?...Nah!)

and 'lots of others have lost their lives' (so why should we waste effort on any of them?)

[Bigmack]

37. Private Tillman.....

... was promoted to corporal after he was killed. For PR purposes.

Tillman got a Silver Star, too... for getting killed by (perhaps) friendly fire.

Heads should roll, Generals should get busted, and the fucking Army needs to get nailed for this whole thing. This whole thing is an insult to every serviceperson, and especially to those who died.

[Career Prole]

39. The Meeting That Never Was: Pat Tillman and Noam Chomsky

Could this be why Pat Tillman had to die?

"I don't believe it," seethed Ann Coulter.

Her contempt was directed at a September 25 San Francisco Chronicle story reporting that former NFL star and Army Ranger war hero Pat Tillman, who was killed in Afghanistan last year, believed the US war on Iraq was "f***ing illegal" and counted Noam Chomsky among his favorite authors. It must have been quite a moment for Coulter, who upon Tillman's death described him in her inimitably creepy fashion as "an American original--virtuous, pure and masculine like only an American male can be." She tried to discredit the story as San Francisco agitprop, but this approach ran into a slight problem: The article's source was Pat Tillman's mother, Mary.

<snip>

As for Chomsky, whom Ann Coulter would undoubtedly label "treasonous," Mary Tillman says a private meeting was planned between him and Pat after Pat's return--a meeting that never took place, of course. Chomsky confirms this scenario. This was the real Pat Tillman: someone who, like the majority of this country, was doubting the rationale for war, distrusting his Commander in Chief and looking for answers. The real Pat Tillman, the one with three dimensions, must stick in the throat of the Bush-Coulter gang, a pit in the cherry atop their bloody sundae.

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/1007-22.htm

When Tillman died, Abu Ghraib was about to break. Tillman's April 22 death was announced just days before the April 28th release of the abuse photos by CBS, a story which the government had been trying to keep the lid on for months.

Imagine the blow to *'s illegal war if the news hit that the popular football star felt the Iraq invasion was "so f&%king illegal" simultaneously with the Abu Ghraib abuse...and talking with Noam Chomsky about it?

It doesn't take much of a tin-foil hat to think Tillman was popped intentionally to shut him up.

[brentspeak]

41. Tillman kept a library of Chomsky books with himself while in uniform

In addition to all other kinds of philosophy and political books. He apparently was vocal about his beliefs concerning the Iraq War, and things in general; and his buddies respected him for it. As another DUer put, this nation lost a warrior-scholar, a possible future leader, when Tillman was killed.

[Voltaire99]

42. How much will this latest PR exercise cost us?

Would it be too impertinent to ask if you could just skip the "investigation" and move straight to the lying?

[fishnfla]

44. The charge of negligent homicide starts with Bush, Cheney,Rice , Rumsfeld

Something happened way wrong on the ground that day. I think the group of soldiers were ordered to cease fire and did not.
Typical SNAFU

[Warren Stupidity]

45. Whitewash round three.

This latest investigation will not look into what happened after Tillman was killed. In other words the conspiracy to cover up Tillman's death will remain out of bounds.

"Patrick Tillman Sr. expressed skepticism that the new investigation will yield answers. ''I think it's another step," he said, ''but if you send investigators to reinvestigate an investigation that was falsified in the first place, what do you think you're going to get?""
http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2006/03/... /

I think you are going to get smoothed over bullshit.