September 22, 2005
Military Judge Bars Release of Abu Ghraib Photos
...Which Have Already Been Published Around the World.
Because the Abu Ghraib photos are so widely known, the order barring their release will have a limited impact. They will not be shown to the public attending the trial, but rather will be shown on computer screens to the officers on the jury.
"They'll be sealed until an appellate court says they won't be sealed," said Capt. Cullen Sheppard, a spokesman for the prosecution.
[(Judge Col. James) Pohl's order could however affect what is released under a 2003 lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union to obtain information on the treatment of U.S.-held detainees.]
Some photos have not been made public. For example, one charge since dropped against England alleged she had been photographed engaging in fellatio with Graner, the abuse ringleader who is serving a ten-year prison sentence.
[one of the now barred Abu Ghraib photos/ not with this story
England's mental agility and compliance to authority was at issue as Pohl decided that he would allow a statement she made to military authorities in January 2004 soon after they learned of the abuses.
Pohl asked how England was able to finish high school and function in society if she could not understand that she could decline to talk to investigators.
"By turning to and leaning on authority figures around her," [lead defense lawyer Capt. Jonathan] Crisp responded.
story | Reuters via Truthout
~By this ruling this judge is insisting on trial decorum in and out of his court-room. I'm guessing the ban also extends to (American) newspaper and tv news-coverage of the trial?
This woman is going to get ten years in prison, barred photos or no barred photos. The judge's ban is simply a matter of house-keeping or media-control, (circus-circumscription?). It will have no affect on the verdict, the officers on the jury will have the photos-streamed on computer monitors, but it may prove helpful for another judge's ruling on the ACLU's request for release of the Abu Ghraib photos not seen by the public. Neatness now and a legal precedent for later: that's a good day's legal work!!
Will there be one monitor for each officer of the jury or will jurors need to buddy-up to see Ms. England's photographic evidence?
Decorum will decide?