A U.S. soldier was sentenced to 100 years in prison Thursday for the gang rape and murder of an Iraq

IN GOD WE TRUST
Published on Apr 18, 2021
(23 Feb 2007) HEADLINE: Soldier Gets 100 Years for Rape, Killing
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CAPTION: A U.S. soldier was sentenced to 100 years in prison Thursday for the gang rape and murder of an Iraqi girl and the killing of her family last year. (Feb. 23)
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[Notes:ANCHOR VOICE]
[Notes:various of house where rape occured]
Army Sergeant Paul Cortez and four other soldiers were charged with raping a 14-year-old Iraqi girl in this house in Mahmoudiyah, Iraq.

[Notes:various of house where rape ocurred]
Cortez admitted to his part in the crimes. As part of a plea deal, he described the rape and murders. He says...

[Notes:pan down on wall with burn marks]
after the girl was raped, the soldiers tried to hide the crime by burning her body, then tried to dispose of evidence.

[Notes:graphic of soldier in gas mask playing cards]
Cortez admitted he and three other soldiers cooked up the plan to rape the girl while they were drinking and playing cards.

[Notes:courtroom sketch of henley behind bench]
Thursday, Army judge, Colonel Stephen Henley sentenced Cortez to the maximum of life without parole for the rape of an Iraqi girl.

[Notes:graphic with sentence]
Military law allows for a lesser sentence unless Cortez violates the terms of a plea deal. That agreement lowers the jail time for the 24-year old to 100 years in prison and a dishonorable discharge. He is eligible for parole in ten years.

[Notes:various of rape scene]
One of the other soldiers involved has already been sentenced to 90 years in prison after pleading guilty. Two more are still waiting for their courts-martial.

[Notes:file of green and Kentucky courthouse.]
A fifth soldier who is accused of being the ringleader, is no longer in the Army. He will face charges in a federal court in Kentucky.

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