Sabrina Harman
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Sabrina D. Harman (born January 5, 1978, Lorton VA) is a former United States Army reservist, one of several felons convicted by the U.S. Army in connection with the 2003-2004 Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in Baghdad, Iraq during and after the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Harman, with other soldiers, was tried for allowing and inflicting sexual, physical, and psychological abuse of Iraqi prisoners of war. Harman held the rank of specialist in the 372nd Military Police company during her tour of duty in Iraq. She was sentenced to six months in prison and a bad conduct discharge.
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[edit] Before Iraq deployment
Harman was born in Lorton, Virginia. Her father was a homicide detective, and the family often saw photos of dead people at crime scenes. Harman's mother, Robin, has been described as a "forensics buff."
After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Harman joined the Army Reserves and was assigned to the Cresaptown, Maryland-based 372nd Military Police company. Harman worked for a time as an assistant manager at Papa John's Pizza in Alexandria, Virginia, before her company was activated for duty in Iraq in February 2003, and was deployed to Fort Lee, Virginia for additional training; however, this was in combat support, not I/R, (military jargon for "internment and resettlement.") While she acknowledged that she knew there was a lot of wrong being done, she claims she knew nothing about there being any official rules about prisoner treatment (i.e., the Geneva Convention).
[edit] Abu Ghraib scandal
The following are statements from Harman and others about what transpired:
"She said the prison had no standard operating procedures and on Tier 1A, where suspected insurgents were held, Army intelligence officers 'made the rules as they went.'"
"'They would bring in one to several prisoners at a time already hooded and cuffed,' Harman said by e-mail this week from Baghdad. 'The job of the MP was to keep them awake, make it hell so they would talk.'"
"In his investigation into abuse at the prison, Taguba used a portion of Harman's sworn statement to conclude that prisoners had been abused. Harman stated '... regarding the incident where a detainee was placed on box with wires attached to his fingers, toes and penis, 'that her job was to keep detainees awake.'"
An Army report obtained by The New Yorker magazine quotes testimony from Harman that her job was to keep detainees awake, including one hooded prisoner who was placed on a box with wires attached to his fingers, toes and genitals. In an interview by e-mail from Baghdad, she told the Washington Post it was made clear that her assignment was to break down the prisoners. Two prisoners sent testimony for her defence saying she was more gentle than other guards with Amjad Ismail Khalil al-Taie stating "She has no cruelty in her. Even though she is an American woman, she was just like a sister."
[edit] Court Martial
Harman was accused by the U.S. Army of:
- Photographing the corpse of Manadal al-Jamadi and then posing for a picture with it;
- Striking several prisoners by jumping on them as they lay in a pile;
- Writing "rapeist" [sic] on a prisoner's leg; and
- Attaching wires to a prisoner's hands while he stood on a box with his head covered and threatening electrocution if he fell.
She was charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice with:
- Conspiracy;
- Dereliction of duty; and
- Cruelty and maltreatment.
Harman was represented by civilian lawyer and retired Air Force colonel Frank Spinner of Colorado Springs, Colorado. He was assisted by Capt. Patsy Takemura and Sgt. Davida McGriff.
[edit] Verdict
Sabrina Harman was convicted on six of the seven counts on May 16, 2005 with an acquittal on one of the maltreatment charges. A military jury of four Army officers and four senior enlisted soldiers deliberated for about 3½ hours before returning their decision. They found her guilty on one count of conspiracy to maltreat detainees, four counts of maltreating detainees and one count of dereliction of duty.
The jury acquitted Harman on one maltreatment count that accused her of photographing a group of Iraqi detainees who were forced by prison guards to masturbate in public. This acquittal was due to the testimony of one of Harman’s co-defendants who established the fact that she was not present when that incident occurred. The jury also found that she did not commit two of the nine acts that were part of the dereliction charge, but she was convicted of the overall offense.
Harman was sentenced to six months in prison with credit for 51 days already served and a bad conduct discharge. She reportedly showed no reaction while the jury foreman read each of the verdicts, and she left the building without offering any comments to the press.
[edit] Harman's response
- A letter home quoted in The New Yorker[1]:
Oct 20, 03
10:40pm
Kelly,
Okay, I don’t like that anymore. At first it was funny but these people are going too far. I ended your letter last night because it was time to wake the MI prisoners and “mess with them” but it went too far even I can’t handle whats going on. I cant get it out of my head. I walk down stairs after blowing the whistle and beating on the cells with an asp to find “the taxicab driver” handcuffed backwards to his window naked with his underwear over his head and face. He looked like Jesus Christ. At first I had to laugh so I went on and grabbed the camera and took a picture. One of the guys took my asp and started “poking” at his dick. Again I thought, okay that’s funny then it hit me, that’s a form of molestation. You can’t do that. I took more pictures now to “record” what is going on. They started talking to this man and at first he was talking “I’m just a taxicab driver, I did nothing.” He claims he’d never try to hurt US soldiers that he picked up the wrong people. Then he stopped talking. They turned the lights out and slammed the door and left him there while they went down to cell #4. This man had been so fucked that when they grabbed his foot through the cell bars he began screaming and crying. After praying to Allah he moans a constant short Ah, Ah every few seconds for the rest of the night. I don’t know what they did to this guy. The first one remained handcuffed for maybe 1 ½-2 hours until he started yelling for Allah. So they went back in and handcuffed him to the top bunk on either side of the bed while he stood on the side. He was there for a little over an hour when he started yelling again for Allah. Not many people know this shit goes on. The only reason I want to be there is to get the pictures and prove that the US is not what they think. But I don’t know if I can take it mentally. What if that was me in their shoes. These people will be our future terrorist. Kelly, its awful and you know how fucked I am in the head. Both sides of me think its wrong. I thought I could handle anything. I was wrong.
Sabrina
- As quoted in the Washington Post:[2]
"[She] said she was assigned to break down prisoners for interrogation. "They would bring in one to several prisoners at a time already hooded and cuffed," Harman said in interviews by e-mail this week from Baghdad. "The job of the MP was to keep them awake, make it hell so they would talk." She said her military police unit took direction from the military intelligence officers in charge of the facility and from civilian contractors there who conducted interrogations."
- At her sentencing:
"As a soldier and military police officer, I failed my duties and failed my mission to protect and defend. I not only let down the people in Iraq, but I let down every single soldier that serves today. My actions potentially caused an increased hatred and insurgency towards the United States, putting soldiers and civilians at greater risk. I take full responsibility for my actions. ... The decisions I made were mine and mine alone."
[edit] Citings
Harman's attorney said he hopes to see the military chain of command put on trial, rather than low-ranking reservists like Harman. "I don't think we can even begin to imagine the kind of environment that she was in. First of all, she wasn't trained to be a prison guard, so she didn't even know the basic rules. She wasn't trained in military intelligence. I don't think any American can really truly appreciate the stress that existed along with the fact they were undermanned and not trained to perform this mission," he said.[1]
[edit] External links
- "She's No Stranger To Grisly Images." CBS: 10 May 2004. 18 June 2004.
- Spinner, Jackie. "Soldier: Unit's Role Was to Break Down Prisoners." Washington Post: 8 May 2004. 18 June 2004.
- Gourevitch, Philip and Errol Morris. Exposure: The woman behind the camera at Abu Ghraib. New Yorker: March 24, 2008.
- Morris, Errol. The Most Curious Thing. New York Times: 19 May 2008
