SEATTLE (AP) — A civilian attorney for the soldier charged in the shooting deaths of 17 Afghan villagers says his client will not participate in an Army review aimed at determining his mental state.
Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was expected to face what’s called a “sanity board” examination of whether he’s competent to stand trial and of his mental state at the time of the March 11 pre-dawn massacre in two southern Afghanistan villages.
His Seattle attorney, John Henry Browne, says he instructed Bales to invoke his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent because the Army will not allow Bales to have an attorney at the sanity board review and will not allow the examination to be recorded.
Army representatives said they were reviewing a request for comment about the issues Browne raised.
