Expert: Marine charged in Iraqi's murder may have brain injury

[The Sushi Bandit]

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/international/americas/news/20070717p2g00m0in004000c.html

CAMP PENDLETON, California -- Repeated exposure to bomb blasts may have impaired the judgment a Marine corporal charged with kidnapping and murdering an Iraqi civilian, an expert in war-related brain injuries told a military judge and jury.

Attorneys for Cpl. Trent D. Thomas rested their case Monday after calling testimony intended to show that the Marine was suffering from traumatic brain injury that impeded his ability to say no when his squad leader ordered him to snatch the man from his home in Anbar province. Thomas, who was on his third combat tour in Iraq, had been exposed to more than 25 bomb blasts that would have "rung his bell," said Maria Mouratidis, head of the traumatic stress and brain injury program at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

Shock waves from such explosions can shred neurons in the brain, causing damage that may lead to difficulty making decisions, processing information quickly, and overriding impulsive responses, especially in high-pressured environments, Mouratidis said. "Corporal Thomas would have difficulty with decision-making, problem-solving and especially with coming up with different solutions in a high-pressure atmosphere," Mouratidis said. "The evidence suggests that he would be very susceptible to influence and have difficulty seeing other options."

[Maat]

1. What a sad situation.

I remember my husband and I turning to each other BEFORE the invasion, and telling each other, "Well, they are setting these kids up for charges of atrocities." You could hear the drumbeats in 2002 - Cheney and the NeoCons really wanted war. They wanted to go in, using the harshest techniques possible, and show everyone around the world who was boss; boy, they sure have created h*ll for our country for generations to come!

[Recursion]

2. The Korea-era helmets we had were worse than useless

They wouldn't stop a bullet, just some shrapnel. But they couldn't be secured very well to your head, with the result that even if it stopped the shrapnel from the blast, your skull banged against the helmet hard enough to jar your brain.

[The Sushi Bandit]

3. Interesting defence

do you think it will fly?