Marine pleads guilty to assaulting Iraqi

[chat_noir]

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. - A Marine pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of assault and obstruction of justice in the death of an Iraqi civilian last April.

Pfc. John J. Jodka III, 20, entered the pleas through his lawyer Joseph Casas after telling the judge at his court-martial that he understood his rights.

He was one of seven Marines and a Navy corpsman initially charged with murder, kidnapping, conspiracy, assault and housebreaking in the killing of 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad in the Iraqi town of Hamdania.

Jodka - the squad's youngest and lowest-ranked member - was among five Marines who shot at Awad, while others stood by then helped cover up the killing, the government charge sheets allege.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/4289823.html

[bluestateguy]

1. Now that he's a felon, he won't be able to vote Republican next month

1 less Republican vote!

[atreides1]

2. I like this part

"Jodka's grandfather Joe Snodgrass, 71, said his grandson had paid for any wrongdoing. Jodka had been locked in the brig since May and his flak jacket had come back peppered with bullet holes from when he had been shot at on patrol."

So for killing an innocent man the kid gets a slap on the wrist, and that's all he should pay for his crime?

"He was trained to follow his leaders and do as they commanded without questioning," Snodgrass said. "He was trying to be the best Marine possible."


I guess everything that the Marine Corps taught him totally wiped out any concept of right and wrong that his grandparents might have taught him, not very good are they. It's either their values are lower than a snake's belly, or killing brown people isn't really a crime to grandpa!!!

[Nihil]

3. Aw .. it was just an introductory ritual ... frat hazing and all that ...

> Jodka - the squad's youngest and lowest-ranked member - was among five Marines who shot
> at Awad, while others stood by then helped cover up the killing, the government charge
> sheets allege.

Nice to see that the youngest kid gets to be the name splashed around.

There again ...

> It's either their values are lower than a snake's belly, or killing brown people isn't
> really a crime to grandpa!!!

... it's tempting to think that the second guess is the correct one ...