Afghan shooting suspect to meet lawyers for first time

A US soldier implicated in the massacre of 16 villagers in Afghanistan was expected to have his first meeting with his defense team on Monday.

US Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales has been in solitary confinement at a military detention center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, since arriving there on Friday.

Bales, 38, a four-tour combat veteran, is suspected of walking off his base in southern Afghanistan on 11 March and gunning down the 16 civilians, including nine children and three women, in a massacre that damaged US-Afghan relations.

Bales has not yet been charged. His civilian attorney, John Henry Browne, is being joined by Emma Scanlan, a civilian and member of Browne’s Seattle law firm, and a military defense counsel, Major Thomas Hurley.

Browne said during the weekend that he planned to meet with Bales at Fort Leavenworth this week.

“It is too early to determine what factors may have played into this incident and the defense team looks forward to reviewing the evidence, examining all of Sergeant Bales’ medical and personnel records and interviewing witnesses,” Browne said in a statement.

Bales had been injured in his previous deployments to Iraq, including losing part of a foot and suffering a concussion from a vehicle accident.

Browne has disputed reports that alcohol and marital problems may have influenced Bales’ state of mind.

A high school football star from southern Ohio, Bales enlisted in the Army after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

His military training included sniper training as well as courses on military leadership and “combat life savers.” He spent a total of 37 months in three deployments in Iraq between 2003 and 2010, and was distressed about being sent to back to a war zone for a fourth tour.

Bales married Karilyn Primeau in 2005, and the couple has two young children. Karilyn Bales and children have been moved into military lodging at Joint Base Lewis-McChord outside of Tacoma. She works for a local business communications firm.

The family has had financial struggles recently. Records show the couple own two properties, both of which have mortgage balances that are greater than the value of the properties.

Bales has had previous minor run-ins with the law: an assault in 2002 and a misdemeanor citation for leaving the scene of a car accident in 2008.

Reuters