[JURIST] A UK coroner's inquest ruled Friday that US troops were responsible for the "unlawful" killing of British reporter Terry Lloyd [BBC profile] in Iraq in March 2003. Oxford Deputy Coroner Andrew Walker concluded that Lloyd, an award-winning reporter for ITN [media website], was killed by a shot to the head as a minivan carried him to a hospital for treatment of a prior gunshot wound, citing "overwhelming" evidence of the soldiers' culpability. He has called for the Attorney General's office to consider bringing charges. Lloyd's daughter praised the outcome of the routine 10-day inquest but complained that US soldiers were prohibited from testifying [Sky report] and that video footage of the attack was missing fifteen minutes of coverage.

After Spanish reporter Jose Couso [advocacy website] was killed in Iraq in 2003, a Spanish court issued arrest warrants for three US soldiers [JURIST report] charged with the killing. Last September, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld promised to address the problem [JURIST report] of increased detentions and killings of journalists in Iraq. Reporters Without Borders [advocacy website] claims that 109 media personnel have been killed in Iraq since the war began in 2003. AP has more. ITV has additional coverage.