one comes to hate those savages....hate them to the death....Exterminate all the brutes! In exhorting his troops, Steele called them predators and Iraqis prey. His order - kill them for a big body count. In appealing his November 9, 2005 - November 8, 2006 evaluation report preventing his promotion to full Colonel, Johnson added: Throughout the duration of my command tenure, Colonel Steele's attitude toward me and my battalion created a dysfunction and intentionally hostile command environment....(He) constantly articulated his judgment and displeasure that my battalion was not being aggressive enough toward the insurgents....He bullied and intimidated my company commanders and questioned them behind my back. The four targeted soldiers implicated Colonel Steele (as a toxic leader), and he received a letter of reprimand from the Corp Commander. Military documents, in fact, showed he acted illegally, caused four Iron Triangle deaths, and got four soldiers convicted for their commander's crime. Yet he escaped accountability with deputy division commander, Brig. General Thomas Maffey, citing his miscommunication (of the rules and) his honest belief of the correctness of the mission ROE. Senate Committee Blames Higher-Ups for Soldier Abuses The fall 2008 Levin-McCain Senate Armed Services Committee Inquiry into the Treatment of Detainees in US Custody concluded that White House officials, their lawyers, and top Pentagon commanders were responsible for the Abu Ghraib abuses, not so-called rotten apples. Still, they were wrongly imprisoned and never exonerated, while administration practices went unchallenged, and continue under a new president as official US policy. Yet on May 10, 2007, General David Petraeus, head of US Central Command said: What sets us apart from our enemies in this fight....is how we behave. In everything we do, we must observe the standards and values that dictate that we treat noncombatants and detainees with dignity and respect. While we are warriors, we are also human beings. Then and now, he lied the way Israeli leaders do calling the IDF the most moral army in the world, as they slaughter, destroy, plunder, and commit the most unspeakable atrocities against anyone who moves or is held in custody. Kill all the brutes, but if lawyers try exposing them, they, in turn, are targeted by a government determined to convict to warn others not to challenge state power even when it's lawless. Bergrin's First Bail Hearing - May 2009 As expected, prosecutors lied in arguing for detention pending trial, accusing Bergrin's law firm of being specifically designed to make money by manipulating the criminal justice system illegally (by) manipulat(ing) witnesses, bribing (them), intimidating (and) killing (them). Mr. Bergrin provided information to assist the hit man in identifying and locating these witness so that they could be killed. An alleged recorded conversation supposedly said he told the hit man to make the hit look like a home invasion robbery, to put on a ski mask and take all of the money, and that under no circumstances (make it) look like a hit. Mr. Bergrin (is also) on one million dollars cash bail in connection with his charges in New York state for money laundering and prostitution. On November 23, 2009, the AP reported that he plead not guilty to bribery, drug, (and) prostitution charges. If he's released, the safety of every single witness in this case will be in jeopardy. In response, defense attorneys called prosecution charges exaggerated, unsupported, and completely, completely _base_less and untrue. On the contrary, He has forged a career. And I'll say it - I'll say it as plainly as I can, it has been in so many ways an exemplary career. He has taken cases....that many lawyers, if not most lawyers, would run away from. He has defended people who most lawyers would not even want to know. And he has done it again and again with integrity. He has done it again and again with character. He served with character and integrity in the US Army, where he achieved the rank of major. He acted with character and integrity when he served as an assistant district attorney in this county. And he acted again with integrity and character when he prosecuted cases as an assistant United Stated attorney in this district. But not only that. He acted with integrity and character because he believed that any person charged with a crime of whatever nature and whatever kind, no matter how serious, no matter what the consequences, that he was a person who was willing to stand up. Yet prosecutors claim Bergrin is really a murderer in disguise wearing the - wearing the garb of a lawyer. In many of these cases, and a particular one in which a witness was going to appear, and you know what, a witness was murdered in that case, and who was the lawyer? Paul Bergrin. And that's the end of it. And from that, they want the Court to infer that somehow he was responsible for that murder. Yes, he has represented murderers. Yes, he's represented gang members. Yes, he's represented killers. (But) that does not make him part of any gang or complicit in their crimes. Mr. Bergrin crossed no ethical line. He crossed no - or violated no penal code. The New York Times quoted government lawyers earlier saying that the integrity of wiretap/recorded conversations was in question, that the tapes had not been properly dealt with, apparently (related to) a sealing problem, creating a suspicion of tampering. The prosecution has one witness in a very thin case _base_d on bogus charges with no proof. The man he's accused of wanting killed is in prison. He was nowhere to be killed. The entire case is _base_d on fabrication and intimidation to suppress truths and convict lawyers who try to expose them. On May 29, Bergrin was denied bail, despite strong arguments for his release. If convicted, he faces possible life imprisonment, perhaps the death penalty. In about two dozen previous articles, this writer documented a consistent pattern of US prosecutorial injustice, misconduct, and abuse against Muslims; Black, environmental and animal rights activists; Latino immigrants; and lawyer Lynne Stewart for representing an unpopular client Department of Justice attorneys wanted to convict. All were innocent, except an environmental activist who plead guilty to a minor offense that at most deserved a reprimand and perhaps small fine, not seven years hard time he's now serving in federal prison for trying to save the earth. From known facts about his case, Bergrin threatened the powerful, so was _frame_d to discredit and silence him. In defending the scapegoated soldiers, he performed heroically. Yet the media vilified him as a lawyer for mobsters, drug dealers, street gang members, rappers, and guilty US troops in stories like New York Times writer David Kocieniewski on May 20, 2009 headlining, Lawyer's Ways Spelled Murder, US Is Charging. Emphasizing DOJ charges, he convicted him in the court of public opinion, biased potential jurors for his scheduled 2010 trial, and left no doubt where The Times stands - guilty as charged as Heller's astute Catch-22 quote above discerned. Bergrin paid for his integrity - for wanting disturbing truths to come out to hold those responsible accountable under US and international law, not innocent soldiers forced to obey orders or face court-martials, dishonorable discharges, fines and imprisonments. He's now victimized and disbarred for doing his job, and in a November 24, 2009 letter to Mestrovic said: This virtual nightmare has destroyed everything (that) I worked my heart and soul out for, including my family. What hurts me the most is I am not guilty and totally innocent....I am (as) despondent as a human being could be and sincerely thank you for your friendship, love and concern. Besides the evidence I uncovered on Operation Iron Triangle, _object_ion Murray and the Rules of Engagement, to kill every military aged male upon contact, I was about to change the course of history (in a press conference) that I had affirmative proof that President Bush, VP Cheney, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, Assist. Secy. of (Defense) Wolfowitz, Carbone and White House Counsel, (Alberto) Gonzales (later US Attorney General) had lied, deliberately and intentionally when they denied knowledge of the torture techniques at Abu Ghraib. If I had the torture memos, I would have compelled the highest levels of the government to testify at these Court- Martials, gone with a not guilty plea and exposed the hypocrisy. Additionally, Col. Pohl denied me calling these witnesses because the (government) alleged there was no nexus nor evidence in existence on the torture memos and techniques; we now know (they) existed and all the above had knowledge of....I could have reversed the convictions at Abu Ghraib and placed blame on the real offenders. My life is in crisis and I don't know where to turn....I really attempted to treat these soldiers and defend them like they were my own children. For that and threatening the powerful, Bergrin faces a possible life sentence if convicted in his 2010 trial. Until then, he's imprisoned without bail under a system rewarding high crimes while targeting lawyers who try to expose them. _______________________________________ Stephen Lendman is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization. He lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephenatsbcglobal.net. Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to the Lendman News Hour on RepublicBroadcasting.org Monday - Friday at 10AM US Central time for cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on world and national issues. All programs are archived for easy listening. http://republicbroadcasting.org/Lendman http://www.paltelegraph.com/world/us/3193-targeting-lawyers-the-case-...