Court-martial set for Army sergeant who refused Iraq redeployment News
Court-martial set for Army sergeant who refused Iraq redeployment

[JURIST] A US Army sergeant from Georgia faces a court martial [JURIST report] Thursday at Fort Stewart on charges of refusing to obey his redeployment order [JURIST report] and serve in Iraq after his first eight-month tour. The Army rejected a request by Sgt. Kevin Benderman [defense website] for conscientious objector status [DOD directive, PDF text] and charged him with deserting his unit and missing movement. If found guilty, Benderman faces up to seven years in military prison, possible demotion to private, and a dishonorable discharge. Benderman has said that the atrocities he saw during his first tour in Iraq left him morally opposed to the Iraq war, and he has spoken out repeatedly about the conflict and his decision. Read his columns,A Matter of Conscience [text], A Right to Life [text], and Why I Refused a 2nd Deployment to Iraq [text]. Benderman's case will be heard by a military judge sitting alone, not a jury of soldiers. If convicted, he faces up to seven years in prison. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Pope Urban II sparks First Crusade

Pope Urban II threw his support behind what would become the First Crusade on November 27, 1095 during the Council of Clairmont. The Pope urged the council's participants to render aid to the Byzantine Empire, which was being attacked by the Seljuks. Pope Urban called for a wide coalition of rich and poor to combat the threat, which eventually resulted in the conquest of much of the Muslim-controlled Levant by the Crusaders and the establishment of the Crusader States. Read Pope Urban's address.  

Catholic Code of Canon Law revised

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