Harman poses over the dead body of
Manadel al-Jamadi, an Iraqi prisoner; a small patch of blood can be seen on his right temple and his eyes are sealed closed with tape.
Charles Graner and Sabrina Harman with naked and hooded prisoners who were forced to form a human pyramid
Sabrina D. Harman, (born 1978), is a former U.S. army reservist, one of several soldiers charged by the U.S. Army in connection with the 2003-2004 Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in Baghdad, Iraq during and after the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Harman, with other soldiers, is accused of allowing and inflicting sexual, physical, and psychological abuse of Iraqi prisoners of war. Harman held the rank of specialist in the 372nd Military Police company during her tour of duty in Iraq.
Harman was born in Lorton, Virginia. Her father was a homicide detective, and the family often saw photos of dead people at crime scenes. Harman's mother, Robin, has been described as a "forensics buff."
After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Harman joined the Army Reserves and was assigned to the Cresaptown, Maryland-based 372nd Military Police company. Harman worked for a time as an assistant manager at Papa John's Pizza in Alexandria, Virginia, before her company was activated for duty in Iraq in February 2003, and was deployed to Fort Lee, Virginia for additional training; however, this was in combat support, not I/R, (military jargon for "internment and resettlement.")
Abu Ghraib scandal
What exactly occurred in Abu Ghraib is still not known. The following are statements from Harman and others about what transpired:
"She said the prison had no standard operating procedures and on Tier 1A, where suspected insurgents were held, Army intelligence officers 'made the rules as they went.' "
" 'They would bring in one to several prisoners at a time already hooded and cuffed,' Harman said by e-mail this week from Baghdad. 'The job of the MP was to keep them awake, make it hell so they would talk.' "
"In his investigation into abuse at the prison, Taguba used a portion of Harman's sworn statement to conclude that prisoners had been abused. Harman 'stated ... regarding the incident where a detainee was placed on box with wires attached to his fingers, toes and penis, 'that her job was to keep detainees awake.' "
Harman is accused by the U.S. Army of:
- Photographing the corpse of Manadal al-Jamadi and then posing for a picture with it;
- Striking several prisoners by jumping on them as they lay in a pile;
- Writing "rapeist" on a prisoner's leg; and
- Attaching wires to a prisoner's hands while he stood on a box with his head covered and threatening electrocution if he fell.
And because of this she is charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice with:
- and
- Cruelty and maltreatment.
Harman is represented by civilian lawyer and retired Air Force colonel Frank Spinner of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Colorado.
An Army report obtained by The New Yorker magazine quotes testimony from Harman that her job was to keep detainees awake, including one hooded prisoner who was placed on a box with wires attached to his fingers, toes and genitals.
In an interview by e-mail from Baghdad, she told the Washington Post it was made clear that her assignment was to break down the prisoners.
Harman's Response
- As quoted in the Washington Post:
"[She] said she was assigned to break down prisoners for interrogation. "They would bring in one to several prisoners at a time already hooded and cuffed," Harman said in interviews by e-mail this week from Baghdad. "The job of the MP was to keep them awake, make it hell so they would talk." She said her military police unit took direction from the military intelligence officers in charge of the facility and from civilian contractors there who conducted interrogations."
Sources
