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Taguba Report Annex 47: Deposition of Staff Judge Advocate Colonel Assigned to the 800th Military Police Brigade re: Abu Ghraib Prison

Feb. 10, 2004 | DOA | OJAG | ACLU-RDI 255
This is the transcript of a deposition of a colonel in the JAG Corps describing his duties as the JAG officer assigned to the 800th Military Police Brigade. He describes his chain of command, his knowledge of Abu Ghraib prison and his knowledge of detainee abuse. He sates he first became aware of detainee abuse in January 2003. When he encountered prisoner abuse he admonished the US MPs present and said “You're not here just to be witness to their abusive behavior toward prisoners, you're here to make sure the abuses don't occur. When asked if he was “aware” of the seriousness of the of some the alleged detainee abuses? He said “Yes”. The deposition goes on detailing his efforts to report and address the detainee abuse as well as his understanding of other matters at the prison, i.e. prisoner escape, guard inadequacies and command failure.
AUTHORING AGENCIES:
RECEIVING AGENCIES:
INCIDENTS OF ABUSE MENTIONED:
  • 2003-01-15, Abu Ghraib (Baghdad Correctional Facility (BCCF)), Iraq
    • A JAG Colonel described an incident he witnessed where several Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison were forced to stand, naked in the cold, on wet floors for an extended period of time as a form of discipline. The prisoners were under US Military Police control, but the act was being committed by Iraqi guards. the MPs were watching this occur and the Colonel admonished them and said “You're not here just to be witness to their abusive behavior toward prisoners, you're here to make sure the abuses don't occur”.