2 isle-based soldiers must face Article 32 hearing in Iraq
Two 25th Infantry Division soldiers from Hawaii charged with the premeditated murder of an Iraqi civilian will face an Article 32 hearing, similar to a civilian preliminary hearing, to determine if they will go before a court-martial.
Lt. Col. Michael Donnelly, 25th Infantry Division spokesman, said in an e-mail from Iraq that the hearing will probably be held in northern Iraq, where the 25th Infantry Division has been stationed since last summer as part of Task Force Lightning.
"An exact location is not determined," said Donnelly, referring to the Pentagon announcement Thursday that Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales and Spc. Christopher Shore have been charged with premeditated murder of an Iraqi civilian on June 23 near Kirkuk, about 155 miles north of Baghdad.
Both soldiers are scouts assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry, 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
Shore completed his Army basic training at Georgia's Fort Benning in August 2002.
Corrales enlisted in the Army in 1992 and graduated from the Army's Ranger School, his family reported. He has also served in Afghanistan.
The murder charges stem from reports made by fellow soldiers. If convicted, the pair could be executed.
Donnelly said the charge sheet, which outlines the specifics of the case, will not be available "until the proceedings are complete."
The commander of the 2nd Battalion, Lt. Col. Michael Browder, was relieved on July 3 and replaced by Lt. Col. Samuel Whitehurst from the 25th Infantry Division's 3rd Brigade Headquarters Unit, Donnelly said.
Browder is not a suspect in the case and is not under investigation.
Maj. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, who commands the 25th Infantry Division and Multinational Division-North, will determine if Corrales and Shore will face a court-martial based upon the findings of the Article 32 hearing.
In Georgia, meanwhile, Shore's mother, Debra Kessler, said she plans to hire a civilian attorney for his defense.
"I love my son and I stand behind him," she told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
