Black Hearts: One Platoon's Descent into Madness in Iraq's Triangle of Death

by Jim Frederick

  Tony Yribe: Originally charged with dereliction of duty and making false official statements for his role in covering up the March 12, 2006, rape-murders, Yribe was granted immunity from prosecution and an other than honorable discharge from the Army for his testimony in the Barker, Cortez, Green, Howard, and Spielman trials. He remained under investigation for the November 2005 killing of a woman at TCP3 until August 2008, when all charges were dropped for insufficient evidence that the shot was anything other than an accident. Separated from the Army in September 2008, he is today living in Bellevue, Idaho, and is planning to return to school.

  LIST OF CHARACTERS

  502nd Infantry Regiment/2nd Brigade Combat Team

  (“Strike Brigade,” “Black Heart Brigade,” “the Deuce”),

  101st Airborne Division

  Colonel Todd Ebel, commander

  Command Sergeant Major Brian Stall, brigade sergeant major

  1-502nd Infantry Regiment

  (“1st Battalion,”“First Strike”)

  Lieutenant Colonel Tom Kunk, commander Command Sergeant Major Anthony Edwards, battalion sergeant major

  Major Fred Wintrich, executive officer

  Major James “Rob” Salome, operations officer

  Captain Leo Barron, intelligence officer

  Headquarters and Headquarters Company (–HHC”)

  Captain Shawn Umbrell, commander

  First Lieutenant Brian Lohnes, scout platoon leader

  Sergeant Cory Collins

  Specialist Josh Munger

  Specialist Benjamin Smith

  Private First Class Tyler MacKenzie

  Alpha Company

  Captain Jared Bordwell, commander

  Private First Class Brian Kubik

  Bravo Company (“Bulldogs”)

  Captain John Goodwin, commander

  First Sergeant Rick Skidis, first sergeant

  Sergeant First Class Andrew Laskoski, first sergeant

  First Lieutenant Justin Habash, executive officer

  Specialist Ethan Biggers, radio transmission operator

  1st Platoon

  First Lieutenant Ben Britt, platoon leader

  First Lieutenant Tim Norton, platoon leader

  Staff Sergeant Phil Miller, platoon sergeant

  Sergeant First Class Rob Gallagher, platoon sergeant

  Sergeant First Class Jeff Fenlason, platoon sergeant

  Specialist Collin Sharpness, medic

  Staff Sergeant Travis Nelson, 1st Squad leader

  Staff Sergeant Chaz Allen, 1st Squad leader

  Staff Sergeant Chris Payne, 2nd Squad leader

  Staff Sergeant Eric Lauzier, 3rd Squad leader

  Staff Sergeant Matthew Walter

  Sergeant Kenith Casica

  Sergeant Roman Diaz

  Sergeant John Diem

  Sergeant Tony Yribe

  Specialist David Babineau

  Specialist James Barker

  Specialist Paul Cortez

  Specialist Thomas Doss

  Specialist James Gregory

  Specialist Anthony Hernandez

  Specialist William Lopez-Feliciano

  Private First Class Chris Barnes

  Private First Class Justin Cross

  Private First Class Steven Green

  Private First Class Shane Hoeck

  Private First Class Bryan Howard

  Private First Class Kristian Menchaca

  Private First Class Jesse Spielman

  Private First Class Thomas Tucker

  Private First Class Justin Watt

  Private Nicholas Lake

  Private Seth Scheller

  2nd Platoon

  First Lieutenant Jerry Eidson, platoon leader

  First Lieutenant Paul Fisher, platoon leader

  Sergeant First Class Jeremy Gebhardt, platoon sergeant

  Staff Sergeant Les Fuller, squad leader

  Specialist Noah Galloway

  Private First Class Ryan Davis

  Private First Class Tim Hanley

  3rd Platoon

  Second Lieutenant Mark Evans, platoon leader

  Sergeant First Class Phil Blaisdell, platoon sergeant

  Staff Sergeant Chris Arnold

  Staff Sergeant Joe Whelchel

  Sergeant Daniel Carrick

  Specialist Anthony “Chad” Owens

  Specialist Kirk Reilly

  Specialist David Shockey

  Specialist Jay Strobino

  Charlie Company (“Cobras,” “the People’s Army”)

  Captain Bill Dougherty, commander

  First Sergeant Dennis Largent, first sergeant

  First Lieutenant Matt Shoaf, executive officer

  Sergeant First Class Lonnie Hayes, platoon sergeant

  Staff Sergeant Jason Fegler

  Sergeant Juan Hernandez

  Delta Company

  Captain Lou Kangas, commander

  First Lieutenant Garrison Avery

  Specialist Marlon Bustamante

  Private First Class Caesar Viglienzone

  Combat Stress Practitioners

  Lieutenant Colonel Elizabeth Bowler, forensic psychiatrist

  Lieutenant Colonel Karen Marrs, psychiatric nurse practitioner

  Staff Sergeant Bob Davis

  2-502nd Infantry Regiment

  (“2nd Battalion,” “Strike Force”)

  Lieutenant Colonel Rob Haycock, commander

  MILITARY UNITS AND RANKS

  Typical Light Infantry Unit Sizes and Leadership

  Division

  Size: 18,000–24,000 soldiers (4 brigades)

  Led by: a Major General and a Command Sergeant Major

  Brigade

  Size: 3,000–6,000 soldiers (6 battalions)

  Led by: a Colonel and a Command Sergeant Major

  Battalion

  Size: 700–1,000 soldiers (4 line companies, 1 headquarters company, and 1 logistics company)

  Led by: a Lieutenant Colonel and a Command Sergeant Major

  Company

  Size: 125–140 soldiers (3–4 line platoons, plus headquarters)

  Led by: a Captain and a First Sergeant

  Platoon

  Size: 25–40 soldiers (3–4 squads)

  Led by: a First or Second Lieutenant and a Sergeant First Class or Staff Sergeant

  Squad

  Size: 7–11 soldiers (2 fire teams)

  Led by: a Staff Sergeant or Sergeant

  Fire Team

  Size: 3–5 soldiers

  Led by: a Sergeant or Specialist

  Rank Structure

  Officer Ranks

  General (O-10)

  Lieutenant General (O-9)

  Major General (O-8)

  Brigadier General (O-7)

  Colonel (O-6)

  Lieutenant Colonel (O-5)

  Major (O-4)

  Captain (O-3)

  First Lieutenant (O-2)

  Second Lieutenant (O-1)

  Enlisted Ranks

  Sergeant Major (E-9)

  Master Sergeant or First Sergeant (E-8)

  Sergeant First Class (E-7)

  Staff Sergeant (E-6)

  Sergeant (E-5)

  Specialist or Corporal (E-4)

  Private First Class (E-3)

  Private (E-2)

  Recruit (E-1)

  ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

  ACU Army combat uniform

  AFP Agence France-Presse

  AIF anti-Iraqi forces

  AO area of operation

  AQI Al Qaeda in Iraq

  AVLB armored vehicle–launched bridge

  BCT Brigade Combat Team

  BDA battle damage assessment

  CIB Combat Infantryman’s Badge

  CID Criminal Investigation Division

  CMO civil-military operations

  CO commanding officer

  COIN counterinsurgency

  COP Coalition Outpost

  COSR Combat and Operational Stress Reaction

  CPA Co
alition Provisional Authority

  CUB Commanders Update Briefing

  EOD Explosive Ordnance Disposal

  FOB forward operating base

  HHC Headquarters and Headquarters Company

  IA Iraqi Army

  IAI Islamic Army in Iraq

  IED improvised explosive device

  IGC Interim Governing Council

  JAM Jaish al-Mahdi (Mahdi Army)

  JRTC Joint Readiness Training Center

  JSB Jurf al-Sukr Bridge

  LZ landing zone

  MisCap-DuStWUn Missing, Captured–Duty Status, Whereabouts Unknown

  MiTT military transition team

  MNF-I Multi-National Force–Iraq

  MRE meal, ready to eat

  MSC Mujahideen Shura Council

  NCO noncommissioned officer

  NTC National Training Center

  OIF Operation Iraqi Freedom

  ORHA Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance

  PJ [Air Force] Para Jumper

  PLDC Primary Leadership Development Course

  POO point of origin

  PSD Personal Security Detachment

  QRF Quick Reaction Force

  RIP-TOA Relief in Place, Transfer of Authority

  ROE rules of engagement

  RPG rocket-propelled grenade

  SAW squad automatic weapon

  TCP traffic control point

  TOC tactical operations center

  VBIED vehicle-borne improvised explosive device

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  FIRST AND FOREMOST, I want to thank the men of the 1-502nd Infantry Regiment. When I began this project I did not know what to expect, but I did not think that very many men from the unit would want to speak to me. I was surprised, gratified, and ultimately humbled by just how many wound up responding affirmatively to my queries. They trusted me with their stories and they opened up about their experiences, knowing that much of their deployment was uncomfortable, controversial, and disquieting. They knew that this book would not necessarily present all their actions in a flattering light, and yet they talked to me anyway, at great length and in great detail.

  Many men, especially those from other platoons or other companies than 1st Platoon of Bravo Company, wanted the world to know that there was more to their war than the rape-murders and the Alamo incident. And the men of 1st Platoon wanted what happened to be put in context. All any of them have ever asked of me is that I do my best to be accurate, that I neither prettify nor vilify their experiences, that I tell their story as truthfully as I could. I am deeply indebted to them, and I hope that I have succeeded.

  Thanks go to all those who participated in or were affected by First Strike’s deployment who graciously agreed to be interviewed: Abu Somer, Allen the Interpreter, Chaz Allen, Chris Arnold, Kayla Avery, James Barker, Chris Barnes, Leo Barron, Gary Bartlett, Richard Baxter, Mark Belda, Phil Blaisdell, Jared Bordwell, Elizabeth Bowler, Daniel Carrick, Renee Casica, Sean Cavenaugh, Steve Cisneros, Paul Cluverius, Dave Cochrane, Eric Conrad, Justin Cross, Anthony Davis, Bob Davis, Phil Deem, Roman Diaz, John Diem, Bill Dougherty, James Downs, Christopher DuBois, Todd Ebel, Jerry Eidson, Anthony Evans, Mark Evans, Jeff Fenlason, Paul Fisher, Les Fuller, Noah Galloway, Jeremy Gebhardt, John Goodwin, Steven Green, John Greis, Justin Habash, Paul Haefele, Walled Mahmoud Hamza, Tyler Hanna, Lonnie Hayes, Nancy Hess, Shane Hoeck, Ryan Hoefer, Bryan Howard, Tim Iannacone, Mark Ivey, Lou Kangas, John King, Tom Kunk, Brian LaFond, Dennis Largent, Andrew Laskoski, Eric Lauzier, Brian Lohnes, Nathaniel Loper, Matt Marcelino, Phil Miller, Joe Mirkovich, Shelly Nelson, Tim Norton, James Page, Roselia Palma, Richard Patenia, Chris Payne, Leif Peterson, Jeff Preston, Rob Salome, Antonio Sandoval, Dennison Segui, Collin Sharpness, Matt Shoaf, Rick Skidis, Daniel Sparks, Jay Strobino, Mike Taylor, Christopher Thielenhaus, Chris Till, Shawn Umbrell, Paul Vermillion, Justin Watt, Rick Watt, Joe Whelchel, Mark Whiteman, William Wilder, Robert Williams, Fred Wintrich, and Tony Yribe.

  This project would be nothing without John Glusman, a profoundly talented and enthusiastic editor, who seemed to understand this project at its very root the moment he read the proposal and we first spoke. Ever since then, I have thanked the heavens for his involvement. He believed in it, championed it, nurtured it every step of the way. He inspired me to work harder and dig deeper than I thought possible, and he always encouraged me to follow the story wherever it led, even after we had long departed the original parameters of the proposal. His team at Harmony Books, including Anne Berry, Domenica Alioto, David Tran, Mark McCauslin, and Campbell Wharton, have been more helpful than I could have possibly imagined.

  I am similarly indebted to Elizabeth Sheinkman, an old friend and an extraordinary agent, who is a wise guide and a fierce advocate, and whose coworkers at the Curtis Brown Agency, especially Felicity Blunt, are similarly a pleasure to work with.

  I am grateful to my editors and colleagues at Time magazine, particularly Michael Elliott, Bobby Ghosh, and Howard Chua-Eoan. They knew I was taking myself out of Time’s, bullpen to work on this book, yet they extended to me all of the door-opening, safety-guaranteeing, wheel-greasing privileges that come with remaining a member of the Time organization for my two trips to Iraq. Without them, those reporting excursions would have been impossible, and their immediate and unquestioned extension of assistance to me was a demonstration of the fraternity of journalism at its best.

  At Time’s, Baghdad bureau, the reporting and logistical assistance, and the simple companionship provided by its foreign correspondents Mark Kukis, Abigail Hauslohner, and Yuri Kozyrev, were impressive and inspiring, proving that grace under pressure defines not just courage but class. Speaking of courage, however, there are few people on the planet braver than innocent Iraqis, especially those who work for Western news organizations. I cannot fathom how Time’s Baghdad staff—Ali, Sami, Mazen, Omar, and Rahd—managed to stay loyal, motivated, sane, and, I dare say, upbeat given the constant threats that have borne down on them—and killed several of their colleagues—but I did and would forever trust them all with my life. They are personal heroes of mine. Time’s South Baghdad stringer Ahmed also assisted with finding interview subjects from the Yusufiyah area.

  I am grateful to Lieutenant Colonels Andrew Rohling, William Zemp, and Michael Getchell, commanders of the 3–187th Infantry Regiment, the 3–320th Field Artillery Regiment, and the 2–502nd Infantry Regiment, respectively, and all of their men for being supremely hospitable embed hosts as I familiarized myself with the Triangle of Death.

  Tara Sad, Bethany Hebert, Ben and Jackson Daviss, and Galen Butcher unflaggingly, relentlessly, doggedly turned several hundred hours of interviews into 4,000 pages of transcripts quickly, cleanly, and often on a rush basis. Tara, in particular, was a confidante and adviser, someone I could always bounce ideas off of or seek an opinion from; she was one of the few people from outside the 1–502nd who, in a way, knew all of the soldiers by listening to their interviews. She took a keen interest in the soldiers and their lives.

  I am grateful to Andrew Tilghman of Stars and Stripes and Ryan Lenz of the Associated Press, who were embedded with the 1–502nd at different times during the battalion’s deployment in 2005 and 2006, for both the stories they wrote and the personal insights they have shared with me since then. Likewise, Sean Naylor of Army Times provided good advice about how best to journalistically navigate the thickets of Freedom of Information Act requests, Army Public Affairs Offices, and other oddities of journalism about the military. Also extending help were Ned Parker of the Los Angeles Times and Michael Ware of CNN. Thanks go as well to Dave Alsup of CNN, Brett Barrouquere of AP, and Evan Bright, boy wonder high-school blogger who documented the Steven Green trial with impressive thoroughness and zeal.

  My old friend Mike Bergner opened his home to be my base for three months when I was literally homeless and flying around the country interviewing soldiers—I could not be more grateful for his hospitality. While on the road, I benefited from the kind
ness of many friends, especially Paul and Erin Scott in Berkeley and Zack Meisel and Cori Schreiber in Philadelphia. John and Elaine Watson rented an apartment in their fourteenth-century farmhouse in North Stainley, Yorkshire, England, to me during the winter of 2008 and 2009 as I wrote the first draft of the manuscript. It is the most perfect writer’s retreat there has ever been. Hugh, Pat, and the entire Greensit family in nearby Masham were and are the best second family in the world and I am blessed to have been so welcomed by them.

  The lawyers associated with all of the cases surrounding the rape-murders of the Janabis have been extremely helpful with background insights and advice, including Bill Casara, William Fischbach, Marisa Ford, Steve McGaha, Juan Roman, Megan Shaw, Brian Skaret, and Elizabeth Walker. Lawyers Patrick Bouldin, David Sheldon, and Darren Wolff deserve special mention for being remarkably generous with their time, trust, and expertise.

  To Jim Culp I am singularly and forever indebted, as he prodded me to investigate this story in the first place and suggested—nay, insisted—that there was far more to the tale than could be contained by a magazine article. He was right.

  I would also like to thank terrorism expert Evan Kohlmann for his assistance in trying to make sense of the Iraqi insurgency, and terrorism blogger Bill Roggio for his views on the complexities of “The Long War.” I am grateful to forensic expert Dr. Michael Baden for his analysis of the March 12 crime scene photos and to Mike Bealing and Julius Domoney for their photo research assistance.

  Cathy Gramling at the 101st Airborne Public Affairs Office and Val Florez of the 101st Airborne’s Freedom of Information Act Office were extremely helpful running down obscure facts and documents.

  I would like to thank my parents and sisters Laura and Sharon for the unflagging support and encouragement they have provided me my entire life. In particular, however, I want to thank my brother Ted, a retired armor Army lieutenant colonel, who was frequently my first stop to ask about the mysteries of the military, and an early reader of the manuscript.

  And nearly last, but in almost every regard first, I want to thank Charlotte Greensit for her truly bottomless love, patience, support, counsel, and cheer. This book could not have been possible without her. She is, in every way, a partner and a soul mate.