The internet chat conversation between a US soldier accused of murdering an Afghan civilian, and his father, a former soldier, was published yesterday.
The father was stunned that his son, after attempting to blow the whistle on squad members for the murder of an Afghan civilian and plans to kill others, ended up accused in the killings. He says his son is innocent, and would never have been in the situation if warnings he says he passed along to the Army were investigated.
Army Specialist Adam Winfield, a US soldier from the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division is charged with conspiracy and murder for allegedly plotting to kill Afghan civilians.
Winfield is member of the same US army unit as Sergeant Calvin Gibbs who allegedly formed a "kill team" to murder Afghan civilians for thrills, reports of which shocked the world. At least two members of the kill team are believed to have kept body parts of their victims corpses. Gibbs is alleged to have threatened to kill Winfield if he didn't participate in efforts to cover-up the killings.
A 23-year old Army Specialist, Jeremy Morlock was the first to face court-martial in a war crimes trial, and was sentenced to 24 yearsin prison after pleading guilty to the murders of three unarmed Afghan civilians.
Harper's obtained and published a transcript of the internet chat between Adam Winfield, and his father, Christopher Winfield. It was provided by Winfield's attorney Eric Montalvo.
Last September, Montalvo spoke with CNN:
His client is not guilty of premeditated murder, Montalvo said, despite the existence of an Army interrogation tape on which Winfield appears to implicate himself and other members of his platoon, including Morlock and Gibbs.
The Facebook chat:
ADAM WINFIELD: Hey.
CHRISTOPHER WINFIELD: What up?
A.W.: Did you read the message I sent?
C.W.: No. Just got home.
A.W.: Read it in private. I only want you and Mom to know about this right now.
C.W.: So are you in trouble now or is it over with?
A.W.: I’m not in trouble. I just lost all and any authority I had. I’m not concerned about my job right now or the promotion board. Did you not understand what I just told you what people did in my platoon?
C.W.: Murder.
A.W.: Yeah, an innocent dude. They planned and went through with it. I knew about it. Didn’t believe they were going to do it. Then it happened. Pretty much the whole platoon knows about it. It’s OK with all of them pretty much. Except me. I want to do something about it. The only problem is I don’t feel safe here telling anyone. The guy who did it is the golden boy in the company who can never do anything wrong and it’s my word against theirs.
C.W.: Was it an Afghan they killed?
A.W.: Yes. Some innocent guy about my age just farming. They made it look like the guy threw a grenade at them and mowed him down. I was on the Stryker and wasn’t on the ground when it took place. But I know they did it because they told me. Everyone pretty much knows it was staged. If I say anything it’s my word against everyone. There’s no one in this platoon that agrees this was wrong. They all don’t care.
C.W.: OK, wow, you are not in a position to say anything to anybody. You don’t know who to trust. I think maybe I need to call a senator’s office and talk to them without mentioning names. I don’t want you to get hurt from this. Let me think this through, OK? Also, were you demoted? Or did you step down from your position?
A.W.: I stepped down. I cannot be a leader in a platoon that allows this to happen. I cannot work for my squad leader who punishes me for leaving a Stryker unlocked and gives high fives to the guy who kills innocent people and plans more with him. That’s why I quit my job. I think if I go to the chaplain I might be fine. But if I do this I want to be as far away from my platoon as I can. There’s a rumor going around that I’m going to talk and the threats are already coming my way.
C.W.: Do this. Tell them that you will not tell. Just ask for a transfer or something. Assure them you won’t tell. Let me do something.
A.W.: It doesn’t work that way. You can’t just ask to move. We are already shorthanded as it is. I’m on the shit list in my platoon for quitting, and my chain of command won’t move me if I ask.
C.W.: Just tell them you want nothing to do with what they do. Make them believe that it’s water past the bridge. I will talk to someone without mentioning our names and ask for help getting you out of there.
A.W.: I’m on the bottom of the totem pole again and the guy that did this has the platoon in his pocket, so he will catch wind of any sort of investigation before I would even know about it, and if I just start packing my stuff one day, that’s it. I’m caught.
C.W.: I know. Don’t do anything until I figure out what to do. You must make them believe you are on their side.
A.W.: Well, I think they think I won’t say anything. I was going to keep my mouth shut but they fucked with the wrong guy this time. I’ve about had it with this Army. Last night I was so mad I almost quit altogether and told them I refuse to go on missions with them but they would really get me in trouble then.
C.W.: Four months left. You will make it through. We will work on this problem too.
A.W.: Well, if you talk to anyone on my behalf I have proof that they are planning another one in the form of an AK-47 they want to drop on a guy.
C.W.: How many are involved?
A.W.: Well, it was two guys who did it, actually killed the dude. But the whole platoon knew about it for the most part. I think our platoon leader doesn’t know and maybe like two dudes. Everyone just wants to kill people at any cost. They don’t care. The Army is full of a bunch of scumbags I realized.
From the website "Free Adam Winfield," dedicated to informing Adam’s supporters about the status of his case, here is an excerpt of the most recent update from Adam's mother, Emma:
Let me begin by apologizing for being so negligent in updating this site, and my infrequency in doing so. My intent is not to keep people of out the loop. The truth is simple; there are days we find it difficult to just function, so writing updates regularly just doesn’t get done. Thank you for your understanding and forgiveness. I’ll start with “personal updates” and then move on to “case updates”.
First let me begin by updating you on Adam’s physical, emotional, spiritual status. Physically, he is well. He has gained all the weight he lost, plus a few pounds. He is a bit pale after a winter in WA, but I suppose that is to be expected. I encouraged him to go outside during Rec time to get a few rays of sunshine on his face. He continues to take meds for depression, anxiety, nightmares, headaches, GI issues from the headache meds, but overall physically well. Emotionally, Adam is exceptionally strong and while he struggles with the day to day drudgery of pre-trial confinement, he manages to stay in decent spirits. Which leads me to his spiritual well-being, he continues to find strength and hope in G-d. The other day on the phone, he shared this verse with me: Proverbs 21:31- The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the Lord. He felt he needed to remind me of this, that’s so Adam making sure I stay encouraged. I suppose that’s exactly where we are too, preparing for battle. He continues to read, read, and read. He is currently reading The Search for Significance by Robert S. McGee. I’ve jokingly said I should start an “Adam Winfield Book Club”, but I doubt others would be able to keep up with the numbers of books he devours. After all, that’s pretty much all he does day after day.
Now to “case updates”, as of today we (well, Adam’s attorneys) continue to prepare for Adam’s trial. We are confident that Adam will be exonerated, and are looking forward to that day. In early March, we were in WA for the motions hearings. We (I really mean we this time, which includes the attorneys) were very pleased with the outcome of the motions. In summary, we were told that Adam’s SOS (my words, not anybody else’s) Facebook chat and emails can be admitted as evidence, given a forensic psychologist/psychiatrist, a ballistics expert, and access to a report describing the command climate of Adam’s brigade, and how Chris’ (Adam’s dad) call was handled, or not handled as it turns out.
It appears that clearly Adam was no willing participant in the deaths of any Afghan civilians, and sought to blow the whistle on the "Kill Team."
Where were the commanding officers during this time?
What happened to the reports made by Adam's father? Who didn't follow-up on the information, and why isn't anyone being charged with a crime as a result?
If you'd like to help out the defense fund for Adam Winfield, you can do so via PayPal.