Abu Ghraib abuse judge won't let Rumsfeld to talk to defense lawyers

A US military judge hearing the Abu Ghraib prison abuse case has refused to order US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to talk to lawyers about prisoner interrogation policy, but suggested he may force key military intelligence officers to testify unless the government charges them.

A US military judge hearing the Abu Ghraib prison abuse case has refused to order US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to talk to lawyers about prisoner interrogation policy, but suggested he may force key military intelligence officers to testify unless the government charges them. The ruling on Tuesday on the officers opened the door to broadening the scope of the scandal beyond the 372nd Military Police Company, a US Army reserve unit to which all soldiers charged so far were assigned.

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Chief prosecutor Maj. Michael Holly told the court two low-ranking soldiers from a military intelligence unit who "we believe are co-conspirators" would probably be charged soon. Six military police officers are facing charges of mistreating prisoners at the Baghdad jail. A seventh, Spc. Jeremy C. Sivits, pleaded guilty May 19 and was sentenced to a year in prison. On Tuesday, a lawyer for Staff Sgt. Ivan L. "Chip" Frederick said his client would also plead guilty to some charges. Frederick had decided to do the "honest and dignified thing" and hoped others in the group would step forward, lawyer Gary Myers said outside the courtroom.

"He's taking responsibility for certain acts," Myers said, adding that an agreement had been reached with prosecutors to drop other charges against him at a hearing on Oct. 20 in Baghdad. He refused to elaborate, saying "there's always the possibility something will change."

Frederick is charged with maltreating detainees, conspiracy to maltreat detainees, dereliction of duty and committing an indecent act.

Attorneys for Spc. Javal Davis demanded that Rumsfeld and his deputy Stephen Cambone to submit to an interview, claiming Rumsfeld had signed a 2002 memo authorizing the use of dogs, nudity, physical contact and isolation against prisoners at the US military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Judge Col. James Pohl rejected a request, but said the motion may be brought back if the defense can fill some of the gaps between the accusations against Davis and Rumsfeld's alleged policy. "There's got to be some links in that chain," Pohl said. "I'm not saying there is not a link. I'm saying at this point you haven't shown me sufficient evidence."

Davis and the five other military police facing charges of abusing prisoners at the Baghdad prison insist they were following orders from military intelligence officers and civilian contractors. Davis' civilian attorney, Paul Bergrin, asked the court to grant immunity from prosecution to Col. Thomas Pappas, the military intelligence commander at Abu Ghraib, and several other officers who may have known of the abuse but have refused to talk to investigators citing their right to avoid self-incrimination. The testimony would broaden the case beyond the reservists and raise the possibility that intelligence officers and others within the military encouraged the abuse to gain information about Iraqi insurgents battling US troops.

But prosecutors argued they might charge the officers after the military completes a report on the role of military intelligence facilities that is expected to be presented to US Congress early next month, which could be made difficult if they were given immunity.

Pohl gave the prosecution until Sept. 17 to convince him that they should not be compelled to testify. He made it clear, however, that if the government does not intend to file major charges against the officers by then, he would probably grant them immunity to testify.

"This would appear to be critical information to the defendants ... that this was condoned by the higher-ups," Pohl told the prosecutors. "You know where this is going - it's either pay me now or pay me later."

The judge said he would also have Reserve Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, the military police commander at Abu Ghraib at the time of the alleged abuse, compelled to testify at the upcoming courts martial.

In the second day of pretrial hearings of four defendants at a US military barracks in Germany, Davis admitted that he initially lied to a military investigator by saying he did not take part in maltreatment.

Davis said he was exhausted after a grueling day manning a watchtower and made the false statement because he wanted the Jan. 14 interview to end. He said he went back to investigators the next day and confessed.

His lawyer pounced on testimony by the military investigating agent, Manora Iem, that he was also tired when he interviewed Davis. "You knew that you were tired that day and yet you put nothing in the report," defense lawyer Paul Bergrin challenged Iem during sharp cross-examination.

Iem said he took no notes during the interview but put together a five-page report of Davis' statements, some typed by Davis himself, which the soldier signed. Iem said Davis told him "that he had seen things that were immoral" and described several of them.