Soldier premeditated killing 5 U.S. troops in Iraq

Judge: Soldier premeditated killing 5 U.S. troops in Iraq
May. 13, 2013
Associated Press

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WASH. — A military judge found Army Sgt. John Russell guilty of premeditated murder Monday in the 2009 killings of five fellow service members at a combat stress clinic in Iraq.

Russell now faces a sentencing phase of his court-martial to determine whether he will face life in prison with or without the possibility of release.

The 14-year veteran from Sherman, Texas, had previously pleaded guilty to unpremeditated murder in exchange for prosecutors taking the death penalty off the table. Under the agreement, prosecutors were allowed to try to prove to an Army judge at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state that the killings were premeditated.
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Fate of Sgt. John Russell in hands of judge