CNN is sending a film crew to the town of Sweetwater, TN to interview family members and residents in the home town of Staff Sergeant Raymond Girouard. For months Staff Sergeant Girouard has been a major focus of our radio broadcasts, blog articles and e-blasts.
The small Tennessee town has united and rallied behind Girouard in an effort to provide emotional support for his family and help raise much needed legal funds for his defense.
Staff Sgt, Girouard, age 24, is accused of murdering Iraqi detainees while on a mission to raid a terrorist training camp. He has been recommended for a court martial and faces the possibility of a life sentence.
Staff Sgt Girouard says that he gave orders to shoot the detainees, after the detainees attacked his men and attempted to escape. He says he was following the rules of engagement which were, "kill all military age males".
Meanwhile Staff Sgt. Girouard 's family (he was raised by his grandparents) are unable to afford an attorney for his defense and he is represented only by a military-court appointed attorney...the civilian equivalent of a public defender.
WATE television in Knoxville, TN is reporting that people from all over America have begun to donate money.
The CNN story is expected to air Friday, March 2nd between 6:00am and 9:00am.
Our position is that Staff Sargent Girouard- like all U.S. military members- deserves a fair, balanced hearing....with expert representation, free from outside agendas and inside politics.
There have been an alarming number of young American soldiers pressured in to plea bargain deals after being accused of wrong doing while serving in combat in Iraq. Which begs the question, why?
Is it a break down in communication? Is it poor training? Is there a culture of a generally understood acceptable form of behavior that is unspoken but tolerated? (Especially when the government has a set of rules at Guantanamo, and a different set elsewhere). Is it the natural result of duress from Combat Operational Stress? Or are we to believe that all these young men -who volunteered to join the U.S. military in a post 9-11 world- are just all bad people with rogue behavior?
To help contribute to Staff Sgt. Girouard's legal defense write to:
American Legion Post 106, C/O Joe Tolson,
P.O. Box 256, Sweetwater, TN 37874.
The memo on your check should read: SSG Ray Girouard Legal Expense
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