Marie Tessier
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Sexual Violence as Occupational Hazard—In Iraq and at Home in the U.S.A.
Jamie Leigh Jones was just 20 in 2005 when she took a leap of faith to work in Iraq for her employer, military contractor Kellogg, Brown & Root, then a subsidiary of Halliburton. She went on a mission she believed in. Shortly after her arrival in Iraq, however, Jones’ ambitions were dashed in an alleged gang rape by co-workers. More »
Iraq Series Update: Sentencing Belies Death Penalty Risk for Rape-Murder Defendants
U.S. Army spokesmen and defense attorneys keep talking about a possible death penalty for defendants in the gang rape and murder of 14-year-old Abeer Al-Janabi and her family in Mahmoudiyah, Iraq, in March 2006. Yet the death threat is inconsistent with recent history in U.S. military courts. More »
Soldier Sentenced to Life in Rape-Murder Case
A military judge in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, yesterday sentenced U.S. Army Spec. James P. Barker to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Barker had pled guilty to 16 crimes related to the gang rape and premeditated murder of 14-year-old Abeer Al-Janabi and her family in Mahmoudiya, Iraq, earlier this year. More »
Soldier Pleads Guilty—First Sentencing Expected Today
U.S. Army Spec. James P. Barker on Wednesday pleaded guilty to 16 crimes related to the gang rape and premeditated murder of 14-year-old Abeer Al-Janabi and her family in Mahmoudiya, Iraq, earlier this year. He is to be sentenced today, Army officials and his civilian defense attorney said. More »
Military Justice System Fails One More Victim of Sexual Violence
The life stories of Jessica Brakey and Abeer Al-Janabi unfold a half a world apart. Yet the former Air Force Academy cadet and the dead Iraqi girl are both powerful symbols of women’s experience of sexual assault. The legal tales of both are curiously juxtaposed this fall in the military’s sprawling criminal justice system. More »
