Guardsman gets life term in prison for trying to aid terrorists

By Ray Rivera
Seattle Times staff reporter

AP Spc. Ryan G. Anderson

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive Most read articles Most e-mailed articles

"I beg you and your families to forgive me," Spc. Ryan G. Anderson said, choking back tears, as he read from a statement. "I'm deeply shaken that what I did could have put your lives in danger. I find comfort in the fact that I was in the hands of investigators."

A nine-member jury of commissioned Army officers spent 4½ hours deliberating before returning a guilty verdict on all five counts. The maximum sentence he could have received was life without parole.

The verdict was followed by 1½ hours of pre-sentencing testimony, including pleas for leniency from Anderson and his mother and father, that proved the most emotional and personal of the four-day court-martial. The jury then adjourned behind closed doors and emerged 3½ hours later, at 12:25 a.m. today, with its sentence, which must be approved by the Fort Lewis base commander before it is imposed.

The jury also recommended dishonorable discharge. If the sentence is approved, Anderson will serve his time at the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, which holds the military's most serious offenders. He will be eligible for parole in 20 years, Army spokesperson Maj. Beth Robbins said.

Anderson, a Lynnwood resident and Muslim convert, was arrested Feb. 12 following a government sting operation at Fort Lewis. One of most powerful pieces of evidence was a video, secretly recorded three days before his arrest, showing Anderson share information on troop strengths, tactics and methods of killing U.S. soldiers and destroying M1 Abrams tanks and other vehicles with undercover agents he believed were al-Qaida operatives.

Anderson's arrest came just weeks before his unit, the 81st Armored Brigade, deployed for a yearlong assignment in Iraq.

" 'A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious, but it cannot survive treason from within,' " Maj. Melvin Jenks said, quoting philosopher Cicero, as he asked jurors for the maximum sentence. "Members, here is the traitor within the gates."

Anderson, 27, showed no emotion when the verdict was read, but later broke down as he spoke publicly for the first time since his arrest, during the pre-sentencing phase. His wife, Erin, gripped a tear-soaked Kleenex.

"I always wanted to serve my country, to be a good soldier," he said. "I wanted to be looked at as, 'There's a guy who had his stuff together.' "

He added that, under the stress and fear of going to Iraq, "I responded in a way I had always done, but I took it too far."

He did not explain what he meant, but a central part of the defense's case rested on the notion that Anderson's actions were driven by mental disorders. He was prone to exaggerate his importance and pretend he was someone he was not. At various times he had told acquaintances that his mother was Jordanian, that he was born in Afghanistan and that he had been a mercenary in South Africa. All were lies.

In earlier testimony, a psychologist said that Anderson suffered from bipolar disorder and used role playing to help provide structure to his life, according to The Associated Press.

And a former Army psychiatrist, Dr. Russell Hicks, said Anderson also suffered from Asperger's Syndrome, a mild form of autism characterized by social isolation and eccentric behavior.

Defense lawyers argued that Anderson's mental disorders made him easy prey for undercover agents, and that he never had any criminal intent.

His lawyers also questioned the value of the information Anderson shared, none of which was classified and most of which was common knowledge or available on the Internet.

"Is that really the face of evil, or is there something else going on there?" Maj. Joseph Morse said in closing arguments, gesturing at Anderson, according to The Associated Press.

But prosecutors contended that Anderson knew what he was doing and had plenty of opportunity to think about it during the sting operation, as he traded 28 e-mails, 200 text messages and had two meetings with people he believed to be al-Qaida operatives.

At trial, they produced experts in military equipment and intelligence who said that even if the information Anderson shared was easily available, it could still endanger the lives of U.S. soldiers.

Prosecutors stressed the point during pre-sentencing, calling to the stand one of Anderson's superior officers now serving in Iraq.

"Trust is all you have; you gotta know your fellow soldier is on your side," said Maj. Patrick Barry, one Anderson's superior officers, who was flown in from Iraq to testify for the prosecution.

The defense tried to paint a softer picture by calling Anderson's parents, who told of his childhood fascination with airplanes and the military.

"If you could just look under the surface," his mother, Linda Tucker, said. "He's not a bad person."

Ray Rivera: 206-464-2926 or rayrivera@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

E-mail this article

Print this article

Search archive

More local news headlines...