Another Gitmo Prosecutor Resigns in Protest

[babylonsister]

Another Gitmo Prosecutor Resigns in Protest
by Eric Umansky, ProPublica - September 25, 2008 11:50 am EDT



The planned war crimes trials there are still inching forward -- and still stumbling. According to an affidavit filed in a Gitmo court yesterday, another military prosecutor has quit the tribunal in protest, citing lack of fairness. The officer, Lt. Col. Darrel Vandeveld, is the fourth prosecutor to step down from the tribunals.

Vandeveld had been assigned to prosecute the case of Mohammed Jawad, who was captured as a teenager in Afghanistan after allegedly throwing a grenade at U.S. soldiers in late 2002. (The defense claims Jawad was forced to fight with the Taliban.) In a four-page declaration, Vandeveld complained that the government hadn't given the defense all "potentially exculpatory evidence."

"In my view," Vandeveld wrote, "evidence we have an obligation as prosecutors and officers of the court {to turn over} has not been made available to the defense."

Jawad's lawyer told the Los Angeles Times that Vandveld was prepared to testify for the defense but has been blocked by the prosecutor's office. Pre-trial hearings are scheduled for today and Friday, and Jawad's lawyer said he's going to ask the judge to compel Vandveld's testimony.

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http://www.propublica.org/article/another-gitmo-prosecutor-resigns-in-protest-925/