Tuesday's World Events - January 20, 2009
1. What type of military record does Captain Roger Hill have?
2. How many men were in Captain Hill's Dog Company? How many were wounded in the first six months in action?
3. What did Captain Hill learn about the ambush in which two of his men were killed (1st Lt. Donnie Carwile and Spc. Paul Conlon)? Explain how Capt. Hill confirmed this information.
4. What was the problem with taking the suspected Taliban collaborators into custody? Why didn't Capt. Hill follow procedure and transfer the suspects to battalion-level custody, turn them over to Afghan authorities or release them?
5. Capt. Hill and Sgt. Scott believed that since their battalion headquarters would not acknowledge their request to take the detainees into custody, their only option for justice was to get a confession from the suspects so that Afghan authorities would hold them. What interrogation methods did Capt. Hill and his 1st Sgt. Tommy Scott use to obtain a confession from the detainees?
6. The army characterized Hill and Scott's actions as war crimes - assault with a dangerous weapon and inflicting psychological harm on the detainees - in violation of the Geneva Conventions. Capt. Hill's attorney Neal Puckett argued that Hill's actions, particularly given his sterling service record, were a lapse in judgment and not a criminal act. What do you think?
7. Re-read para. 24-30. Do you think justice was served in this case? Explain your answer.