Accused soldier's dad: Where were his leaders? :: Namibia Internet Gateway cc ::

Articles: Accused soldier's dad: Where were his leaders?

Posted by admin on Monday, May 10, 2004 - 02:34 AM

HYNDMAN, Pa. - Yellow ribbons adorned the front porch yesterday at the home of the first U.S. soldier to face a court-martial in connection with the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison.
Spc. Jeremy C. Sivits, 24, a member of the 372nd Military Police Company, will face a court-martial May 19 in Baghdad, Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt said yesterday in Iraq. The family didn't answer the front door yesterday and wouldn't comment when reached by phone. Earlier, his father, Daniel Sivits, said his son was trained as a truck mechanic, not a prison guard, and would have gotten in trouble had he not followed orders to photograph the abused prisoners. ``Apparently, he was told to take a picture and he did what he was told,'' Daniel Sivits told The Associated Press in an interview late last month. ``He was just following instructions.'' Sivits grew up in a military family and ``knows how to follow instructions,'' his father said. Neighbors said yesterday Daniel Sivits is a veteran of the Army, Navy and Marine Corps, and is a member of the VFW. Daniel Sivits, in an interview on April 30, said he thought the abuse scandal stemmed from a lack of leadership. ``All it is (is) lack of leadership, lack of instruction and lack of standard operating procedure and everyone at the top is covering their butts,'' Daniel Sivits said. ``My only question is this: Where was the leadership?'' In 2002, Sivits married Holly Louise Sivits, who is believed to be staying with her parents. A man who answered the phone at their number yesterday said the family had no comment. Jeremy Sivits' best man and former baseball coach - 32-year-old Jamey Ringler of Hyndman - said yesterday he thought that because Sivits grew up in a military family he had believed following orders was the right thing to do. ``I'm sure he feels he was in the wrong, but it was beat into his head that he had to follow orders. So in a sense, in his mind, that was right,'' Ringler said. Mayor Dell Biller said yesterday Sivits would do ``a little devilish thing'' once in a while when growing up but he was ``a wonderful kid.'' Biller said he spoke on Saturday with the Sivits, who said they don't know where their son is. ``They have heard nothing since practically day one . . . and it ain't right,'' Biller said. ``I can't think this boy would have done something like this without being forced to.''

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