AP: New details on Tillman's death (a tad graphic, but no more than CSI)

[deminks]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070726/ap_on_re_us/tillman_friendly_fire_1

SAN FRANCISCO - Army medical examiners were suspicious about the close proximity of the three bullet holes in Pat Tillman's forehead and tried without success to get authorities to investigate whether the former NFL player's death amounted to a crime, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.

"The medical evidence did not match up with the, with the scenario as described," a doctor who examined Tillman's body after he was killed on the battlefield in Afghanistan in 2004 told investigators.

The doctors — whose names were blacked out — said that the bullet holes were so close together that it appeared the Army Ranger was cut down by an M-16 fired from a mere 10 yards or so away.

Ultimately, the Pentagon did conduct a criminal investigation, and asked Tillman's comrades whether he was disliked by his men and whether they had any reason to believe he was deliberately killed. The Pentagon eventually ruled that Tillman's death at the hands of his comrades was a friendly-fire accident.

The medical examiners' suspicions were outlined in 2,300 pages of testimony released to the AP this week by the Defense Department in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

(end snip)

More at the link. I don't think we know the whole story even yet. Just my hunch. But the cover up creates that feeling that you never will know the whole story.

[originalpckelly]

1. Uh oh, I wonder what's up with this, something doesn't add up...

You don't mistake someone only ten yards (30 feet) away for the enemy. I've got bad eyes and can make out faces at that distance, any of these soldiers should have had good eyesight. Something is really up here.

[kenny blankenship]

2. Was he killed to create a martyr?

[originalpckelly]

3. I don't know, but if you were a soldier with probably good eyesight...

would you be able to mistake your comrade only 30 feet away for the enemy?

I've seen tapes of these things before, and they're usually long distance shots from tanks or from airplanes thousands of feet up in the sky.

This doesn't sound right. Maybe it was an accident, God knows these soldiers are 1000 times more courageous than I'll ever be, but I don't think it's too unreasonable to say something smells fishy here. Especially when it was covered up so far up the chain of command (although that could be solely due the high profile of person killed.)

His poor family, it's bad enough lose someone you love, let alone having to go through this shit.

[mentalsolstice]

6. Even if you can't see their face, at least you'd recognize the uniform n/t

[kenny blankenship]

9. That would depend on a host of circumstances

about which in this case I know nothing.

[RufusEarl]

4. Someone needs to talk to that doctor.

[deminks]

5. "• No evidence at all of enemy fire was found at the scene — no one was hit by enemy fire,

nor was any government equipment struck."

Oh my god.

Help me keep this kicked, so people won't miss this.

[Richard Steele]

7. A deliberate murder. It's just that simple. nm

[Schema Thing]

8. whoa....Ok.... chills. n/t

[Schema Thing]

10. And they destroyed his uniform and diary.

[DS1]

11. Fragged - 3 round burst on an M16

[kenny blankenship]

16. That's one detail that seems kind of strange to me.

3 holes, ok one assumes a pull of the trigger on a single M16 set on burst which fires 3 times.
But would they really end up neatly spaced on one forehead, admittedly a larger forehead than the average man's? Probably not. Recoil acting on the aim of the shooter, impact on the victim moving the target--it just seems really improbable even from 30 feet away.
3 shooters shooting firing-squad style at the same forehead at once? One obsessive-compulsive shooter firing three times at his leisure to make a tight grouping of shots?

[Posteritatis]

21. Shots in a burst are pretty close together

Some random poking at the youtubesphere gives me this:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=frqw_Rp7_v0

That looks like nine rounds fired in a hair under one second, and it's not until about halfway into the burst that the rifle really starts moving.

I'm very much a layman on the matter, but I could believe a burst could put three rounds that close together at fairly short range.

Anyone who's fired one of these things out there able to chime in?

[deminks]

12. On KO NOW Teaser: Far worse than we thought

[PA Democrat]

13. Yes, he mentioned emails between Army lawyers congratulating each other on

the successful cover up. Wesley Clark will be on to discuss.

[deminks]

14. Clark on now, KO asks about fragging Clark says case still open

[PA Democrat]

18. I don't know how the Tillman family handles this.

It makes me furious how everything done by the Bush administration is spin and lies.

[Elwood P Dowd]

15. A three round burst from an M16 wouldn't leave much of a head.

I wonder how many that served with him will eventually end up dead?

[johnfunk]

17. Throw the bastard(s) that killed Tillman to Michael Vick's dogs...

That would suit me just fine...

[blondeatlast]

19. Just saw this on KO--Good Lord. Tillman was murdered.

Please tell me I'm imagining this. Please...

[Bluebear]

20. "Yes, Mr. President, confirmed, you have your War Poster Boy now. Over." nt