A US federal jury convicted a former soldier of raping and fatally shooting a 14-year-old girl after killing her parents and younger sister while he was serving in Iraq.
Steven Dale Green faces a possible death sentence when the penalty phase of his trial opens on Monday in the unusual case of a crime in a war zone being prosecuted in civilian court.
Green (24) of Midland, Texas, was being tried in federal court because he had been discharged from the Army for a personality disorder before he was charged with the Iraq crimes.
Green stared straight ahead as the verdict was read in US District Court in western Kentucky.
Defence attorney Darren Wolff, speaking afterward, said the defence never denied Green’s involvement.
The trial began on April 27th, and jurors deliberated for more than 10 hours beginning on Wednesday before finding Green guilty.
PA