The brother of an Afghan man killed last year in a shooting rampage by a U.S. soldier says he is outraged that Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales will not face the death penalty.
Bales pleaded guilty to murder Wednesday, ensuring that the harshest sentence he will receive is life in prison.
The former staff sergeant was charged with attacks in March 2012 on two villages near a remote military base in southern Afghanistan. Most of the victims were women and children, and investigators said some of the bodies were burned.
Baraan Noorzia, whose brother was a victim of the shooting, said Thursday the verdict does not "satisfy" him.
He questioned the legitimacy of a law that "gives leniency and not the death penalty to someone who deserves it."
A military jury will decide in August whether Bales is sentenced to life with or without the possibility of parole.
Bales pleaded guilty to murder Wednesday, ensuring that the harshest sentence he will receive is life in prison.
The former staff sergeant was charged with attacks in March 2012 on two villages near a remote military base in southern Afghanistan. Most of the victims were women and children, and investigators said some of the bodies were burned.
Baraan Noorzia, whose brother was a victim of the shooting, said Thursday the verdict does not "satisfy" him.
He questioned the legitimacy of a law that "gives leniency and not the death penalty to someone who deserves it."
A military jury will decide in August whether Bales is sentenced to life with or without the possibility of parole.