FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. - Two soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division were arraigned Thursday on murder charges in the death of Iraqi detainees last summer.
Pfc. Corey R. Clagett and Spc. William B. Hunsaker are accused of killing three Iraqi men detained during a raid in May on a suspected al-Qaida stronghold about 60 miles north of Baghdad.
Both declined to enter formal pleas in separate Army hearings, but their civilian attorneys proclaimed their innocence.
Clagett's attorney, Paul Bergrin, said in a telephone interview that the allegations are politically motivated and untrue. "Corey Clagett did nothing but serve his country honorably," he said.
Clagett and Hunsaker, who are accused along with two other soldiers, claim they were ordered to kill "all military-aged males" by their brigade commander and other commanders who oversaw the operation.
The military has scheduled courts-martial on Feb. 27 for Clagett and Dec. 4 for Hunsaker.
Hunsaker's defense attorney Michael Waddington said government prosecutors are trying to hide that soldiers were raiding a known and hostile al-Qaida stronghold.
"That is a big deal, considering the mind-set of a young 21-year-old guy," Waddington said. "Even the slightest hostile movement, in their minds, I think they would have been justified to shoot."
Four other soldiers and a former Army private from the division's 2nd Brigade are accused of raping a 14-year-old girl and murdering her and three others in her family. All are expected to be arraigned in the coming week.
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