Darris Dawson's Killer Claims Self-Defense

Villagers may recall the murder of Staff Sgt. Darris Dawson and his mate in Iraq last year. The Article 32 hearing for Sgt. Joseph Bozicevich, a 3rd Infantry Division soldier accused of shooting and killing his fellow platoon leaders on Sept. 14 came to an end this week with the defense arguing the killings were in self-defense.

If found guilty of premeditated murder, Bozicevich could be sentenced to life in prison or put to death.

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US Soldier Charged With Killing 2 Mates in Iraq

Any hint of a military cover-up is over. A soldier has been charged with murder in the September shootings of a superior and a fellow team leader at their Army patrol base in central Iraq.

Sgt Joseph Bozicevich, 39, has been returned to the US from Iraq and is being held in pre-trial confinement at an undisclosed location in southern Georgia.

Bozicevich is charged with the September 14 slayings of Army Staff Sgt Darris Dawson, 24, and Sgt Wesley R Durbin, 26. Written charges filed against Bozicevich say he shot both soldiers with a rifle.

Maxine Mathis, Dawson's stepmother in Florida, said she wasn't rushing to judgment.

"I don't want to condemn him," Mathis said. "I don't know what state that child was in. He's somebody's son, too."

Bozicevich's father, who lives near Albany, New York, said he hadn't heard from his son much since his unit deployed to Iraq last year. He said he was unaware his son faced criminal charges until a reporter contacted his family yesterday evening.

"We just have to wait and see what the circumstances were," said Joe Bozicevich Sr, the soldier's father. "In a combat zone, where people are highly stressed, who knows what happened?"

The soldiers were serving a 15-month deployment to Iraq with the 4th Brigade Combat Team of the Army's 3rd Infantry Division.

Update on Sgt. Darris Dawson Murder by Army Soldier in Iraq

UPDATE: Video update on Sgt. Dawson's funeral held in Florida last week.

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Drumbeats from the Army Times provide us updated information on the murder of Sgt. Darris Dawson. It seems that a counseling session at a small outpost in Iraq took a fatal turn when the soldier being counseled opened fire with his M4 on a fellow team leader and their squad leader.

Both the team leader and squad leader died on September 14, despite efforts to save them.

The incident took place at a joint security station in Jurf as Sakhr, a town about 15 miles southwest of Baghdad on the Euphrates River. The two soldiers killed were identified as Staff Sgt. Darris J. Dawson, 24, of Pensacola, Fla., a squad leader, and Sgt. Wesley R. Durbin, 26, of Hurst, Texas, a fellow team leader.

The soldier who allegedly shot them was in Dawson’s squad. The Army refused to identify him pending the filing of charges.

Neither Dawson nor Durbin was wearing body armor, helmet or other protective gear during the counseling, and each was shot multiple times.

Dawson’s stepmother, Maxine Mathis, said Sept. 18 that the family was told “through the grapevine” that the shooter had lost a grenade and her stepson ordered him to retrieve it.

“This young man misplaced a grenade, and they told him to find it,” Mathis said. “Evidently he got upset with that and locked and loaded and went berserk.” Mathis, who is married to Dawson’s father, Darryl Mathis, would not reveal her source. “I can’t say he died for his country, dying like that,” a weeping Mathis said from her home in Pensacola, Fla.

Mathis said her stepson joined the Army immediately after graduating from high school six years ago. He was serving his third combat tour in Iraq, and had re-enlisted not long before he was killed. He was the father of four young children.

Mathis said he told her, “Momma, I’m not so afraid of the enemy. I’m afraid of our young guys over there, because they’re so jumpy and so quick to shoot.”

The slayings mark the third time during five years of operations in Iraq that such an incident has taken place.

Military Cover-Up of Darris Dawson Murder?

Drumbeats from PurpleZoe pointed us to disturbing news that Army Staff Sgt. Darris J. Dawson and another soldier were killed in Iraq this week. Thousands have been killed in the fighting of the Iraq War, however, these killings have a twist...

...Another U.S. soldier is being held in connection with killings.

U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Darris Dawson, and Sergeant Wesley Durbin are reported to have been shot and killed earlier this month on a U.S. military base south of Baghdad ... not in combat, but while on an Army base.

The Pentagon is not giving any answers publically or privately to the family. The family of Sgt. Dawson is seeking an attorney to find out details of the tragedy ... and in fact, to find the location of his body. It should be noted that Sgt. Dawson leaves behind a wife and four young children.

The Pentagon's initial description of Dawson's death read, "A multi-national division center soldier died this morning of non-combat related causes. The cause of death is under investigation."

We have seen how the military is dealing with the death of LaVena Johnson. I hope that we aren't having a repeat performance in this case.

You can get more details on this case HERE.