Jury finds Passaro guilty of assault

RALEIGH -- A federal jury this morning convicted David Passaro of assaulting an Afghan man on a remote U.S. military base, making the former CIA contractor the first person associated with the agency convicted for abusing a prisoner during the nation's current wars.

The jurors found Passaro guilty of one count of felony assault inflicting serious bodily injury and three misdemeanor counts of simple assault. Legal experts predicted Passaro would receive up to three years in prison based on the federal sentencing guidelines. But he likely will not be sentenced for three months until a presentencing report is compiled.

After the verdict was read, Assistant Federal Public Defender Joseph Gilbert patted Passaro on the back, and Passaro reciprocated. Marshals then handcuffed Passaro and led him from the court.

"Dave was disappointed in the verdict," Gilbert said outside Raleigh's federal courthouse afterward. "We're going to keep on fighting and do the best we can at sentencing."

Acting U.S. Attorney George Holding said, "Today, a North Carolina jury sitting in Raleigh delivered a message to the world — nobody is above or beneath the law of the United States of America. The assault took place 8,000 miles away from here. The person assaulted was an Afghan farmer. The person who assaulted him was a U.S. citizen working for the CIA as a contractor. But because it was done at a U.S. base with an American flag flying over it, that victim found a little bit of justice here in Raleigh today."

Passaro, 40, of Lillington, had originally been charged with two counts of assault by a dangerous weapon and two counts of assault inflicting serious bodily injury in the June 2003 interrogations of Abdul Wali, a suspect in rocket attacks on the base. Prosecutors say Passaro beat Wali on two consecutive nights, and Wali died the next day.

The trial was closely watched in the United States and abroad by human-rights activists, legal experts and those in military and intelligence services.

Prosecutors in closing arguments Wednesday that said Passaro beat Wali on June 19 and June 20 in 2003 -- using a 2-foot Maglite flashlight and a heavy hand-held spotlight. During the trial, soldiers testified that Passaro ordered them to hold Wali in the "iron chair" position, with his back against the wall and legs bent as if sitting. Passaro then questioned Wali and used the Maglite to hit his hands, shins and knees, they said. Passaro also jabbed Wali in the abdomen with the flashlight and twice kicked Wali in the groin, they said.

How does the jury know that Wali suffered extreme physical pain? U.S. Attorney James Candelmo asked Wednesday.

Because, he said, on the second night, Wali cried after each blow. And the next day, hours before his death, Wali begged the guards to shoot him. Candelmo said that Wali repeated a phrase that a CIA interpreter said meant, "I'm dying."

Candelmo said the government did not have to prove Passaro caused Wali's death.

"All we have to prove is he was struck," Candelmo said. "All we have to prove is he was in extreme physical pain."

Passaro's defense

Defense attorneys countered that Passaro, a former Special Forces soldier, was a patriot who answered his country's call by joining a CIA paramilitary team. They say Passaro, who was untrained in interrogation, was sent by his boss to question Wali and ended up becoming the government's scapegoat after Wali died. Passaro's only intent was to find out from Wali who else was responsible for the attacks.

"Dave's intent was not to hurt this guy. Dave's intent was to find out his associates," said Joseph A. Gilbert, an assistant federal public defender. "Dave's intention was to save the U.S. and stop these guys from coming here."

Life at the U.S. military base near Asadabad, Afghanistan, Gilbert said, involved soldiers under constant threat of rocket attacks inside the fort's perimeter and at risk of roadside bombs and gunfire outside the fort's walls. "Abdul Wali is a terrorist. Abdul Wali is responsible for these rocket attacks," Gilbert told the jury.

Gilbert recalled how the Afghan interpreter for the CIA didn't believe Wali was a farmer based on his clothes and the fact that he wore a wristwatch. "Why did he need a wristwatch?" Gilbert asked. "He needed a wristwatch to coordinate the coordinated rocket attacks."

Gilbert also attacked the prosecution's contention that Wali was so severely beaten by Passaro on the first night by pointing out that Wali asked for Passaro on the second night. "Would a guy brutally beaten so savagely say please bring me back that guy?" Gilbert asked.

Gilbert told the jury that Passaro shouldn't become a convicted felon based on such flimsy evidence -- testimony from soldiers who feared being court-martialed, no autopsy to prove the injuries and three doctors who said there wasn't enough information to determine Wali's cause of death.

"Here in the U.S., we're not supposed to convict people based on guesses," Gilbert said. "We're not supposed to convict people based on speculations."

After Passaro was taken away today, a member of Passaro's church who sat through most of the trial said he was wrongly convicted.

"Dave trusts the Lord and will continue to find his strength," said Bert Pitchford, former pastor at Flat Branch Presbyterian Church in Bunn Level.