[Vision2020] 05-08-04 Washington Post: Soldier: Unit's Role Was to Break Down Prisoners

[Art Deco aka W. Fox]

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 washingtonpost.com
Soldier: Unit's Role Was to Break Down Prisoners
Reservist Tells of Orders From Intelligence Officers

By Jackie Spinner
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, May 8, 2004; Page A01


There were no rules, by her account, and there was little training. But the
mission was clear. Spec. Sabrina D. Harman, a military police officer who has
been charged with abusing detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, said she
was assigned to break down prisoners for interrogation.

"They would bring in one to several prisoners at a time already hooded and
cuffed," Harman said by e-mail this week from Baghdad. "The job of the MP was to
keep them awake, make it hell so they would talk."

Harman, one of seven military police reservists charged in the abuse of
detainees at the prison, is the second of those soldiers to speak publicly about
her time at Abu Ghraib, and her comments echo findings of the Army's
investigation into prisoner abuse there. That probe documented the maltreatment
of detainees and found the prison was chaotically run, that there were no
apparent rules governing interrogations and that Harman's military police unit
was ill trained for the job it was asked to perform.

Harman, a 26-year-old Army reservist from Alexandria, said members of her
military police unit took direction from Army military intelligence officers,
from CIA operatives and from civilian contractors who conducted interrogations.
She did not discuss abusive treatment of prisoners or clarify who specifically
ordered such treatment, and she referred questions about the charges against her
to her attorney, who declined to comment.

Her face is now famous as belonging to one of two soldiers posing in the widely
published photograph of naked Iraqi detainees stacked in a pyramid. The picture
is one of several that have inflamed the Arab world and brought condemnation
from President Bush and other U.S. political and military leaders.

Harman is accused by the Army of taking photographs of that pyramid and
photographing and videotaping detainees who were ordered to strip and masturbate
in front of other prisoners and soldiers, according to a charge sheet obtained
by The Washington Post. She is also charged with photographing a corpse and then
posing for a picture with it; with striking several prisoners by jumping on them
as they lay in a pile; with writing "rapeist" on a prisoner's leg; and with
attaching wires to a prisoner's hands while he stood on a box with his head
covered. She told him he would be electrocuted if he fell off the box, the
documents said.

In her e-mails, Harman said detainees would be handed over to her military
police unit by Army intelligence officers, by CIA operatives or by the
contractors. The Army probe into Abu Ghraib said the U.S. government used
employees of private companies as interrogators and interpreters along with
intelligence officers. Two of the civilian contractors are under investigation
in connection with the abuses.

Prisoners were stripped, searched and then "made to stand or kneel for hours,"
Harman said. Sometimes they were forced to stand on boxes or hold boxes or to
exercise to tire them out, she said.

"The person who brought them in would set the standards on whether or not to 'be
nice,' " she said. "If the prisoner was cooperating, then the prisoner was able
to keep his jumpsuit, mattress, and was allowed cigarettes on request or even
hot food. But if the prisoner didn't give what they wanted, it was all taken
away until [military intelligence] decided. Sleep, food, clothes, mattresses,
cigarettes were all privileges and were granted with information received."

She said the prison had no standard operating procedures and on Tier 1A, where
suspected insurgents were held, Army and other intelligence officers "made the
rules as they went."

Harman joined the Army as a reservist in 2001, after the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks. She was assigned to the 372nd, based in Cresaptown, Md. The company was
called up for duty in February of last year and deployed to Fort Lee, Va., for
three months before heading to Iraq.

Harman, an assistant manager at a Papa John's Pizza in Fairfax County before
being sent to Iraq, said the company received additional training at Fort Lee,
but it was for "combat support, not I/R," the military term for internment and
resettlement. She said she was never schooled in the Geneva Conventions' rules
on prisoner treatment.

"The Geneva Convention was never posted, and none of us remember taking a class
to review it," Harman said. "The first time reading it was two months after
being charged. I read the entire thing highlighting everything the prison is in
violation of. There's a lot."

In the Army report on conditions at the prison, Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba said
that "soldiers were poorly prepared and untrained to conduct I/R operations
prior to deployment, at the mobilization site, upon arrival in theater and
throughout their mission."

The Army has launched several investigations into the abuse and has notified
seven officers and sergeants that they will receive letters of reprimand or
admonishment that could end their careers.

Harman is charged with conspiracy, dereliction of duty, cruelty and
maltreatment, making a false statement, and assault. She faces an Article 32
hearing tentatively set in June, the military equivalent of a preliminary
hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to convene a
court-martial.

In his investigation, Taguba used a portion of Harman's sworn statement to
conclude that prisoners had been abused. Harman "stated . . . regarding the
incident where a detainee was placed on box with wires attached to his fingers,
toes, and penis, 'that her job was to keep detainees awake.' "

The other soldiers charged with abuse are Staff Sgt. Ivan L. Frederick II, Sgt.
Javal S. Davis, Cpl. Charles A. Graner Jr., Spec. Jeremy C. Sivits, Spec. Megan
M. Ambuhl and Pfc. Lynndie R. England. England, who was shown in a photo
published in Thursday's Post, was charged yesterday.

Harman's mother, Robin Harman, said her daughter would never hurt anyone.

"She has this . . . attitude that she is going to save the world," said Robin
Harman, who lives in Northern Virginia. "She got over there and got an
eye-opener. You don't put unqualified kids in that situation."

Yesterday, as Robin Harman watched Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld testify,
she called her daughter a "scapegoat." "They're passing the buck, putting it all
on the little kids," she said. "That's what makes me so mad."

Harman took many photographs while in Iraq, her family said.

Among hundreds of digital pictures passed around her MP unit -- and obtained by
The Post -- is one taken before the soldiers got to Abu Ghraib in October. In
it, Harman is smiling, crouching slightly, a thumb up, and leaning toward a
blackened, decaying corpse with long fingers and a gaping mouth.

The photo was taken at a makeshift combat morgue in Al Hillah, her family said,
citing letters that Harman sent with the picture.

Sabrina Harman grew up around photographs of dead people, her family explained.
Her father was a homicide detective, and her mother was a forensics buff. Robin
Harman said her husband often brought home crime-scene photographs for the
family to "profile."

"She has been looking at autopsies and crime-scene pictures since she was a
kid," her mother said.

Shortly after Harman got to Abu Ghraib in October, her mother said, she began to
take and collect pictures as evidence of the improper conditions.

Robin Harman said when her daughter told her what she was doing, she ordered her
to stop. "We got into an argument about it at 4 a.m.," Robin Harman said.
"Sabrina said she had to prove this. I told her to bring the pictures home, hide
them and stay out of it."

Sabrina Harman brought the photographs home to Virginia in mid-November during a
two-week leave. An Army investigator showed up on Jan. 16 and took a CD of
photos and Harman's laptop computer, her roommate said.

In February, the Army moved Harman to Camp Victory, a base of trailers and tents
near Baghdad's airport. Her weapon was confiscated, but she is not in
confinement. She spends her days sweeping streets and planting flowers, her
family said.

Robin Harman said her daughter had dreamed of following her father into a career
as a homicide detective. Now she does not want to have anything to do with law
enforcement, Robin Harman said.

"She just moved out two years ago," Robin Harman said. "She has no clue what
people are really like. She thinks everyone is good."



© 2004 The Washington Post Company




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<FONT size=3D3>&nbsp;</FONT><A =
href=3D"http://www.washingtonpost.com/"><FONT=20
face=3Dhelvetica,arial color=3D#000000 =
size=3D-1><B>washingtonpost.com</B> </FONT></A>
<P><FONT size=3D+2><B>Soldier: Unit's Role Was to Break Down =
Prisoners</B></FONT>=20
<BR>Reservist Tells of Orders From Intelligence Officers=20
<P><FONT size=3D-1>By Jackie Spinner<BR>Washington Post Staff =
Writer<BR>Saturday,=20
May 8, 2004; Page A01 </FONT>
<P><NITF>
<P>There were no rules, by her account, and there was little training. =
But the=20
mission was clear. Spec. Sabrina D. Harman, a military police officer =
who has=20
been charged with abusing detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, =
said she=20
was assigned to break down prisoners for interrogation.</P>
<P>"They would bring in one to several prisoners at a time already =
hooded and=20
cuffed," Harman said by e-mail this week from Baghdad. "The job of the =
MP was to=20
keep them awake, make it hell so they would talk."</P>
<P>Harman, one of seven military police reservists charged in the abuse =
of=20
detainees at the prison, is the second of those soldiers to speak =
publicly about=20
her time at Abu Ghraib, and her comments echo findings of the Army's=20
investigation into prisoner abuse there. That probe documented the =
maltreatment=20
of detainees and found the prison was chaotically run, that there were =
no=20
apparent rules governing interrogations and that Harman's military =
police unit=20
was ill trained for the job it was asked to perform.</P>
<P>Harman, a 26-year-old Army reservist from Alexandria, said members of =
her=20
military police unit took direction from Army military intelligence =
officers,=20
from CIA operatives and from civilian contractors who conducted =
interrogations.=20
She did not discuss abusive treatment of prisoners or clarify who =
specifically=20
ordered such treatment, and she referred questions about the charges =
against her=20
to her attorney, who declined to comment.</P>
<P>Her face is now famous as belonging to one of two soldiers posing in =
the=20
widely published photograph of naked Iraqi detainees stacked in a =
pyramid. The=20
picture is one of several that have inflamed the Arab world and brought=20
condemnation from President Bush and other U.S. political and military=20
leaders.</P>
<P>Harman is accused by the Army of taking photographs of that pyramid =
and=20
photographing and videotaping detainees who were ordered to strip and =
masturbate=20
in front of other prisoners and soldiers, according to a charge sheet =
obtained=20
by The Washington Post. She is also charged with photographing a corpse =
and then=20
posing for a picture with it; with striking several prisoners by jumping =
on them=20
as they lay in a pile; with writing "rapeist" on a prisoner's leg; and =
with=20
attaching wires to a prisoner's hands while he stood on a box with his =
head=20
covered. She told him he would be electrocuted if he fell off the box, =
the=20
documents said.</P>
<P>In her e-mails, Harman said detainees would be handed over to her =
military=20
police unit by Army intelligence officers, by CIA operatives or by the=20
contractors. The Army probe into Abu Ghraib said the U.S. government =
used=20
employees of private companies as interrogators and interpreters along =
with=20
intelligence officers. Two of the civilian contractors are under =
investigation=20
in connection with the abuses.</P>
<P>Prisoners were stripped, searched and then "made to stand or kneel =
for=20
hours," Harman said. Sometimes they were forced to stand on boxes or =
hold boxes=20
or to exercise to tire them out, she said.</P>
<P>"The person who brought them in would set the standards on whether or =
not to=20
'be nice,' " she said. "If the prisoner was cooperating, then the =
prisoner was=20
able to keep his jumpsuit, mattress, and was allowed cigarettes on =
request or=20
even hot food. But if the prisoner didn't give what they wanted, it was =
all=20
taken away until [military intelligence] decided. Sleep, food, clothes,=20
mattresses, cigarettes were all privileges and were granted with =
information=20
received."</P>
<P>She said the prison had no standard operating procedures and on Tier =
1A,=20
where suspected insurgents were held, Army and other intelligence =
officers "made=20
the rules as they went."</P>
<P>Harman joined the Army as a reservist in 2001, after the Sept. 11 =
terrorist=20
attacks. She was assigned to the 372nd, based in Cresaptown, Md. The =
company was=20
called up for duty in February of last year and deployed to Fort Lee, =
Va., for=20
three months before heading to Iraq.</P>
<P>Harman, an assistant manager at a Papa John's Pizza in Fairfax County =
before=20
being sent to Iraq, said the company received additional training at =
Fort Lee,=20
but it was for "combat support, not I/R," the military term for =
internment and=20
resettlement. She said she was never schooled in the Geneva Conventions' =
rules=20
on prisoner treatment.</P>
<P>"The Geneva Convention was never posted, and none of us remember =
taking a=20
class to review it," Harman said. "The first time reading it was two =
months=20
after being charged. I read the entire thing highlighting everything the =
prison=20
is in violation of. There's a lot."</P>
<P>In the Army report on conditions at the prison, Maj. Gen. Antonio M. =
Taguba=20
said that "soldiers were poorly prepared and untrained to conduct I/R =
operations=20
prior to deployment, at the mobilization site, upon arrival in theater =
and=20
throughout their mission." </P>
<P>The Army has launched several investigations into the abuse and has =
notified=20
seven officers and sergeants that they will receive letters of reprimand =
or=20
admonishment that could end their careers.</P>
<P>Harman is charged with conspiracy, dereliction of duty, cruelty and=20
maltreatment, making a false statement, and assault. She faces an =
Article 32=20
hearing tentatively set in June, the military equivalent of a =
preliminary=20
hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to convene a=20
court-martial.</P>
<P>In his investigation, Taguba used a portion of Harman's sworn =
statement to=20
conclude that prisoners had been abused. Harman "stated . . . regarding =
the=20
incident where a detainee was placed on box with wires attached to his =
fingers,=20
toes, and penis, 'that her job was to keep detainees awake.' "</P>
<P>The other soldiers charged with abuse are Staff Sgt. Ivan L. =
Frederick II,=20
Sgt. Javal S. Davis, Cpl. Charles A. Graner Jr., Spec. Jeremy C. Sivits, =
Spec.=20
Megan M. Ambuhl and Pfc. Lynndie R. England. England, who was shown in a =
photo=20
published in Thursday's Post, was charged yesterday.</P>
<P>Harman's mother, Robin Harman, said her daughter would never hurt =
anyone.</P>
<P>"She has this . . . attitude that she is going to save the world," =
said Robin=20
Harman, who lives in Northern Virginia. "She got over there and got an=20
eye-opener. You don't put unqualified kids in that situation."</P>
<P>Yesterday, as Robin Harman watched Defense Secretary Donald H. =
Rumsfeld=20
testify, she called her daughter a "scapegoat." "They're passing the =
buck,=20
putting it all on the little kids," she said. "That's what makes me so =
mad."</P>
<P>Harman took many photographs while in Iraq, her family said.</P>
<P>Among hundreds of digital pictures passed around her MP unit -- and =
obtained=20
by The Post -- is one taken before the soldiers got to Abu Ghraib in =
October. In=20
it, Harman is smiling, crouching slightly, a thumb up, and leaning =
toward a=20
blackened, decaying corpse with long fingers and a gaping mouth.</P>
<P>The photo was taken at a makeshift combat morgue in Al Hillah, her =
family=20
said, citing letters that Harman sent with the picture.</P>
<P>Sabrina Harman grew up around photographs of dead people, her family=20
explained. Her father was a homicide detective, and her mother was a =
forensics=20
buff. Robin Harman said her husband often brought home crime-scene =
photographs=20
for the family to "profile."</P>
<P>"She has been looking at autopsies and crime-scene pictures since she =
was a=20
kid," her mother said. </P>
<P>Shortly after Harman got to Abu Ghraib in October, her mother said, =
she began=20
to take and collect pictures as evidence of the improper conditions.</P>
<P>Robin Harman said when her daughter told her what she was doing, she =
ordered=20
her to stop. "We got into an argument about it at 4 a.m.," Robin Harman =
said.=20
"Sabrina said she had to prove this. I told her to bring the pictures =
home, hide=20
them and stay out of it."</P>
<P>Sabrina Harman brought the photographs home to Virginia in =
mid-November=20
during a two-week leave. An Army investigator showed up on Jan. 16 and =
took a CD=20
of photos and Harman's laptop computer, her roommate said.</P>
<P>In February, the Army moved Harman to Camp Victory, a base of =
trailers and=20
tents near Baghdad's airport. Her weapon was confiscated, but she is not =
in=20
confinement. She spends her days sweeping streets and planting flowers, =
her=20
family said.</P>
<P>Robin Harman said her daughter had dreamed of following her father =
into a=20
career as a homicide detective. Now she does not want to have anything =
to do=20
with law enforcement, Robin Harman said.</P>
<P>"She just moved out two years ago," Robin Harman said. "She has no =
clue what=20
people are really like. She thinks everyone is good." </P>
<P></P></NITF>
<P>
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