Official: Soldier to face 17 murder counts in Afghan shootings
U.S. officials have alleged that Staff Sgt. Robert Bales killed 16 people in two villages in southern Afghanistan.
March 22nd, 2012
06:53 PM ET

Official: Soldier to face 17 murder counts in Afghan shootings

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales will be charged with 17 counts of murder and six counts of assault and attempted murder in connection with a March 11 shooting spree in Afghanistan, a senior U.S. official told CNN.

The charges are expected to be announced on Friday. The official did not explain why Bales is to be charged with 17 counts, as opposed to 16, which is the number of people reported to have been killed in the incident.

U.S. officials have alleged that Bales killed 16 men, women and children in two neighboring villages in the Panjwai district of Kandahar province, in southern Afghanistan.

Bales is being held in a military prison in Leavenworth, Kansas.

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Filed under: Afghanistan • Courts • Crime • Justice • Military • U.S. Army
soundoff (11 Responses)
  1. RUFFNUTT (kcmo resident and smoker of fine purple kush)

    The official did not explain why Bales is to be charged with 17 counts, as opposed to 16...
    .
    because one of the victims had a split persomality...

    March 22, 2012 at 7:01 pm | Report abuse |
  2. Sofa King

    Well, he can take some comfort in knowing he wasn't tortured in Afghanistan, while they strap him into old sparky in about 20 years.

    March 22, 2012 at 7:10 pm | Report abuse |
  3. bob soltys

    One charge of murder under the UCMJ; sixteen specifications (or "specs"), one for each victim. Thus a total of 17.

    March 22, 2012 at 7:11 pm | Report abuse |
  4. banasy©

    @bob:
    Perhaps one of the women were pregnant?
    I don't know how the military justice system works; you are probably right.

    March 22, 2012 at 8:16 pm | Report abuse |
  5. momof5

    They should hold the Army accountable for letting another one fall through the cracks.

    March 22, 2012 at 8:28 pm | Report abuse |
    • Pat

      Obama should be on trial. Got bin laden. What are our boys and our tax dollars still over there for?

      March 25, 2012 at 4:13 pm | Report abuse |
  6. leeintulsa

    the 17th would be all our efforts thus far in afghanistan..

    March 22, 2012 at 10:01 pm | Report abuse |
  7. High Hopes

    17...

    Maybe there's another incident we didn't know about?

    Who planted the mine that blew off the soldiers
    leg a few days before the villagers were attacked?

    Surely, they would've cleared the area before
    telling the villagers it was safe to return...
    Makes ya wonder, just how far an off-center
    can go.

    March 22, 2012 at 10:33 pm | Report abuse |
  8. Mary

    Who knows what lays in the vortex of peoples demented minds after serving 4 tours of duty.
    Having said that, no one can say this man was operating at full capacity.
    No one in their right mind is gonna go out and riddle women and children with bullets for the heck of it.

    March 22, 2012 at 11:11 pm | Report abuse |
  9. fred

    We (YOU) (Your CONGRESSMEN) sent them to kill people there! Does it really matter who they are????????

    March 23, 2012 at 2:45 pm | Report abuse |
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