General Upholds Behenna Murder Conviction
By Jerry Bohnen/NewsRadio 1000 KTOK ~ It's been a disappointing week for Vicki Behenna of Edmond after an Army General at Fort Campbell, Kentucky upheld the murder conviction of her son.
Army Lieutenant Michael Behenna was convicted last spring of the 2008 murder of a detainee he was supposed to have freed in Iraq.
"Yeah, it's sickening," said Behenna in an interview with KTOK News. "As much as Michael thinks somebody in the military's going to stand up for his rights, I'm thinking that the lawyers in the military reviewing this and seeing that violation, where favorable evidence wasn't turned over to the defense, would want to correct that."
Her son got a 25-year sentence that he is serving at the Leavenworth federal penitentiary in Kansas. While the general affirmed the findings of guilt, he also reduced Behenna's sentence to 20 years.
But she's not giving up.
"We intend to fight this all the way, if we have to go to the Supreme Court on it, we're gonna do that for Michael because what happened to him was not right and it was not a fair trial."
Behenna, a federal prosecutor in Oklahoma City, has talked with her son following this week's announcement by the Army.
"Obviously he is very disappointed. He thinks somebody in the military's gonna stand up for him and that has not happened."
Michael Behenna was under orders last year to release a detainee who was a terror suspect. The detainee was Ali Mansur and as Behenna started to return him to his home, he attempted one last interrogation. The soldier claims that during the interrogation, Mansur attacked him and he was forced to shoot and kill him.
Vicki Behenna contends there was favorable evidence from a government forensics expert that was not allowed to be heard at trial and was, in fact, dismissed by prosecutors who did not inform the court or defense attorneys of the expert's findings.
Army Lieutenant Michael Behenna was convicted last spring of the 2008 murder of a detainee he was supposed to have freed in Iraq.
"Yeah, it's sickening," said Behenna in an interview with KTOK News. "As much as Michael thinks somebody in the military's going to stand up for his rights, I'm thinking that the lawyers in the military reviewing this and seeing that violation, where favorable evidence wasn't turned over to the defense, would want to correct that."
Her son got a 25-year sentence that he is serving at the Leavenworth federal penitentiary in Kansas. While the general affirmed the findings of guilt, he also reduced Behenna's sentence to 20 years.
But she's not giving up.
"We intend to fight this all the way, if we have to go to the Supreme Court on it, we're gonna do that for Michael because what happened to him was not right and it was not a fair trial."
Behenna, a federal prosecutor in Oklahoma City, has talked with her son following this week's announcement by the Army.
"Obviously he is very disappointed. He thinks somebody in the military's gonna stand up for him and that has not happened."
Michael Behenna was under orders last year to release a detainee who was a terror suspect. The detainee was Ali Mansur and as Behenna started to return him to his home, he attempted one last interrogation. The soldier claims that during the interrogation, Mansur attacked him and he was forced to shoot and kill him.
Vicki Behenna contends there was favorable evidence from a government forensics expert that was not allowed to be heard at trial and was, in fact, dismissed by prosecutors who did not inform the court or defense attorneys of the expert's findings.
Labels: Michael Behenna, Military Justice, Vicki Behenna
posted by Mike McCarville @ 10:25 AM
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