Army sniper sentenced
This letter is in regard to a story you ran Feb. ll on pg 3A, titled "Army Sniper gets 10 years". I read and reread the article and what I came up with is this. Army Sgt. Evan Vela, a sniper, on orders from his superior officer, Staff Sgt. Michael Hensley, WHO COMMANDED HIM TO SHOOT, shot and killed an Iraq civilian who was attracting attention to their hidden camp in the village of Jufr Sakr, an area then hostile to U.S. soldiers. Vela was sentenced to 10 years in prison. The army forfeited his pay and benefits and he will have a dishonorable discharge.
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My questions are these. He was ordered by his superior officer. Isn't that what soldiers are supposed to do, follow orders? Would he have been disciplined if he refused his orders? And what discipline or sentence did his superior staff Sgt. Hensley receive? It was not stated in the article. Are we now expecting our service men to second guess their superior office
rs, and refuse orders if they don't think a certain action is warrented? It sounds like Army Sgt. Evan Vela is being a scapegoat and paying the price for previous incidents that came under scrutiny. IS THERE MORE TO THIS STORY? If only the snipers at Ruby Ridge and Kent State, to name a couple, refused to shoot.
Tammy Baer
Hellam Township
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