JBLM Soldier Accused of Afghan Massacre Back in Court

Staff Sgt. Robert Bales is back in court today at Joint Base Lewis-McChord for another hearing in his case regarding the murder of 16 Afghan civilians during a 2012 rampage.

Defense lawyers and military prosecutors will convene at JBLM for a motion hearing to discuss Bales' recent mental health evaluation and see if he is fit to stand trial, according to Q13 Fox. The prosecution and defense will each present their case.

Prosecutors allege that Bales left the base he was stationed at in Afghanistan and killed 16 people during a predawn attack on March 11, 2012. The victims were mostly women and children.

Bales, 39, has not entered a plea, but the Army is seeking the death penalty. No one has been executed by the U.S. military since 1961.

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According to KOMO News, Bales' defense team believes the military prosecution case is incomplete and a critical argument will be made that Bales suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The prosecution argued during a recent preliminary hearing that military personnel saw Bales return to the base alone after the killings, covered in blood. One soldier testified that Bales woke him up in the middle of the night, confessing he just shot people at one village and was going out to attack another. The soldier testified that he didn't believe Bales and went back to sleep.

An Army criminal investigations command special agent also testified that Bales tested positive for steroids three days after the killings, and other soldiers testified that Bales had been drinking the evening of the massacre.

Bales is to be court-martialed on premeditated murder and other charges in the southern Afghanistan village attacks. The trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 3.

READ MORE

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Army Will Seek Death Penalty For Accused Afghanistan Shooter Robert Bales of JBLM

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