Prater On Behenna Case: 'The justice system, both civilian and military, is about seeking the truth'
Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater is "disgusted and angry" about the handling of the Army's prosecution of Lt. Michael Behenna of Edmond.
Prater, in a statement to The McCarville Report Online, said, "As a prosecutor, if the allegations against the military prosecutors are true, I am disgusted and angry. The justice system, both civilian and military, is about seeking the truth, not just convicting the accused. If the military prosecutors failed to disclose exculpatory evidence to the defense team of Lt. Behenna, they have lost all understanding of their duty. As disturbing, is the fact that the military judge did nothing to address this egregious, ethical and moral violation of duty by the prosecutors."
Prater joins former federal prosecutor Robert McCampbell and others in criticizing what appears to be a breach of legal ethics in the case. McCampbell spoke out last week on Reid Mullins' morning show on radio station KTOK. Behenna, a member of the 101st Airborne and an Army Ranger and the son of federal prosecutor Vicki Behenna and retired Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agent Scott Behenna, was convicted in a court martial in the 2008 death of Al Qaida operative Ali Mansur in Iraq.
His conviction is being appealed based on the expert opinion of prosecution witness Dr. Herbert L. MacDonell, who was not called to testify and who says it is his belief that the evidence supports Behenna's defense that he shot Mansur in self-defense when Mansur charged him. The prosecution alleged Behenna executed Mansur while he was on the ground. MacDonell said the forensic evidence supports Behenna's defense and that's why the prosecution did not call him to testify.
MacDonnel revealed his opinion to Behenna's defense counsel. It was not revealed to the military tribunal by the lead prosecutor, Captain Meghan Poirier, until MacDonell sent an email after Behenna was convicted and before he was sentenced to 25 years in prison. The tribunal refused an appeal of the conviction on Behenna's behalf based on the prosecution's failure to disclose MacDonnel's forensics evidence, but reduced his sentence to 18 years which he is now serving at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Read MacDonnel's belief in Behenna's innocence at http://defendmichael.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/govexpertwitness.pdf.
Prater, in a statement to The McCarville Report Online, said, "As a prosecutor, if the allegations against the military prosecutors are true, I am disgusted and angry. The justice system, both civilian and military, is about seeking the truth, not just convicting the accused. If the military prosecutors failed to disclose exculpatory evidence to the defense team of Lt. Behenna, they have lost all understanding of their duty. As disturbing, is the fact that the military judge did nothing to address this egregious, ethical and moral violation of duty by the prosecutors."
Prater joins former federal prosecutor Robert McCampbell and others in criticizing what appears to be a breach of legal ethics in the case. McCampbell spoke out last week on Reid Mullins' morning show on radio station KTOK. Behenna, a member of the 101st Airborne and an Army Ranger and the son of federal prosecutor Vicki Behenna and retired Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agent Scott Behenna, was convicted in a court martial in the 2008 death of Al Qaida operative Ali Mansur in Iraq.
His conviction is being appealed based on the expert opinion of prosecution witness Dr. Herbert L. MacDonell, who was not called to testify and who says it is his belief that the evidence supports Behenna's defense that he shot Mansur in self-defense when Mansur charged him. The prosecution alleged Behenna executed Mansur while he was on the ground. MacDonell said the forensic evidence supports Behenna's defense and that's why the prosecution did not call him to testify.
MacDonnel revealed his opinion to Behenna's defense counsel. It was not revealed to the military tribunal by the lead prosecutor, Captain Meghan Poirier, until MacDonell sent an email after Behenna was convicted and before he was sentenced to 25 years in prison. The tribunal refused an appeal of the conviction on Behenna's behalf based on the prosecution's failure to disclose MacDonnel's forensics evidence, but reduced his sentence to 18 years which he is now serving at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Read MacDonnel's belief in Behenna's innocence at http://defendmichael.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/govexpertwitness.pdf.
Labels: David Prater, Dr. Herbert L. MacDonell, Meghan Poirier, Michael Behenna, Military Justice, Reid Mullins, Robert McCampbell
posted by Mike McCarville @ 12:12 AM
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