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Soldier Draws 110 Years for Rape, Murder

Coconspirators handed tough sentences for young girl's death

By Sam Biddle,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 5, 2007 9:00 AM CDT
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(Newser) – A military court handed Jesse Spielman a dishonorable discharge and a 110-year prison sentence for raping and murdering an Iraqi girl last year. Spielman and four comrades planned the 2006 assault on a family near Baghdad over a drunken game of cards; they then gang-raped and murdered the girl, her parents and sister, according to the court.

The attacks immediately fueled anti-American sentiment across Iraq, but Spielman's sentence is the sternest so far. Two other soldiers got 90 and 100 year sentences, while a third—an already-discharged private—is facing trial and a possible death sentence in a civilian court.

U.S. Army soldiers from Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division handles a detainee that was captured during an operation in search of possible al-Qaida suspects in the Amariyah neighborhood of west Baghdad, Iraq on Thursday, Aug. 2, 2007. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
U.S. Army soldiers from Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division handles a detainee that was captured during an operation in search of possible al-Qaida suspects...   (Associated Press)
Iraqi soldiers leap over a puddle of sewage as they search for elements of al-Qaida in the eastern part of Baqouba, 60 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, July 22, 2007. h U.S. and Iraqi troops continued their operations to clear Sunni extremists from the city. U....
Iraqi soldiers leap over a puddle of sewage as they search for elements of al-Qaida in the eastern part of Baqouba, 60 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, July 22, 2007. h U.S. and...   (Associated Press)
This is an undated photo released by the U.S. Army of Pfc. Jesse V. Spielman. A military jury began deliberating on Friday, Aug. 3, 2007, whether an Army soldier took part in the rape and murder of a 14-year-old Iraqi girl. Pfc. Jesse Spielman, 22, of Chambersburg, Pa., is...
This is an undated photo released by the U.S. Army of Pfc. Jesse V. Spielman. A military jury began deliberating on Friday, Aug. 3, 2007, whether an Army soldier took part in the rape and murder of a...   (Associated Press)
U.S. Army soldiers from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division kick a door open as they search a house for possible al-Qaida suspects in the Amariyah neighborhood of west Baghdad, Iraq on Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2007. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
U.S. Army soldiers from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division kick a door open as they search a house for possible al-Qaida suspects in the Amariyah neighborhood...   (Associated Press)
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Iraq • military • war crimes • murder • rape • court • sentencing • soldier • Jesse Spielman • death sentence

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