Hearing reset in Iraq death case

BAGHDAD - A pretrial hearing will be held Sept. 20 at a U.S. base in Tikrit for an Oklahoma lieutenant charged in the death of an Iraqi detainee, the U.S. military announced Saturday.

Army 1st Lt. Michael C. Behenna of Edmond, Okla., has been charged with premeditated murder, assault, making a false official statement and obstruction of justice in the death of Ali Mansour Mohammed, the military said in a statement.

Staff Sgt. Hal M. Warner of Braggs, Okla., faces the same charges in the case. His Article 32 hearing, which will determine if there is enough evidence for a court-martial, has already been announced for Thursday in Tikrit.

Both are assigned to D Company, 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division from Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The unit is currently stationed in Beiji in northern Iraq.

The U.S. statement did not give details of the allegations but said the victim had first thought to have been released in May.

But charges filed by the military say Warner and Behenna killed Mohammed "by means of shooting him with a pistol."

Warner's attorney, James Phillips, said his client did not kill the detainee and he would fight the charges "all the way until the end."