US report details lapses in deadly Iraq shooting

An Army sergeant at the center of the military's worst soldier-on-soldier violence in six years had gone to four counseling sessions. His rifle had been disabled out of fear for his safety. He'd asked military police to take him into custody, saying "I'm done."

Despite these warnings, a military investigation found he managed to steal an automatic weapon and kill five people at a base-counseling center.

A report from the investigation concluded that there were key lapses in how the military monitored him and how authorities responded once the May 11 shooting began at Camp Liberty, on the edge of Baghdad.

Sgt. John M. Russell, 44, a member of the Bamburg, Germany-based 54th Engineer Battalion, faces five murder counts. The 325-page report includes detailed witness statements and describes the unraveling of a soldier less than two months before the end of his third deployment.

While all names, including Russell's, have been removed from the report, it refers to the person taken into custody as well as his unit.

The internal investigation was ordered by Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby, the No. 2 commander in Iraq, to determine if policies regarding service members at risk of hurting themselves or others were followed properly and whether they were adequate, military spokesman Lt. Col. David Patterson said. A military criminal investigation is ongoing.

Elizabeth Ann Russell, mother of the accused, said she had no comment. Russell's father previously has questioned whether his son snapped under questioning by counselors, or feared that his career was over.

Russell is undergoing medical treatment in Butner, N.C., with the goal of improving his condition so he can participate in a planned court-martial at Fort Lewis, said Maj. Mike Garcia, a spokesman at the post. (Russell's unit was attached to the Fort Lewis-based 555th Engineer Brigade while in Iraq.)

Dozens of pages were redacted from the report. The military in Iraq already has implemented some of the investigation's recommendations, Patterson said.

The report describes a man whose problems were known and who received counseling, yet at critical times did not appear to get the help he needed. "He was counseled and transported to Behavior Health appointments. His duties were adjusted at the platoon/company level. His company officers and NCOs were involved. Yet these efforts were not sufficient. Why?" the report read.

Russell was on his fourth visit to a mental-health clinic when the appointment was cut short because he became uncooperative, the report stated. Military police ordered him back to his unit.

Less than an hour later, he grabbed an M-16 rifle from a fellow soldier, stole a white Ford Explorer SUV and returned to the counseling facility, the report read.