Soldier Pleads Not Guilty in Detainee Murder

By Carrie Pond

Ft. Campbell, KY – A Fort Campbell soldier has pleaded not guilty to a murder charge in the death of an Iraqi detainee. A spokesman for the military installation said today that 1st Lt. Michael Behenna entered his plea to the charges of premeditated murder, assault and making a false statement. Behenna and Staff Sgt. Hal Warner, both assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, were charged in the death last May of a detainee in Iraq. Behenna and Warner are scheduled for separate military trials next month. A military judge ruled Wednesday that Warner's statements implicating both himself and Behenna in the death cannot be used in the trials because he was questioned prior to being read his rights.