Convicted GI Will Not Serve Time

A decorated Army captain convicted in the shooting death of a wounded, unarmed Iraqi was dismissed from the military Friday but will serve no time in prison.

A relieved Capt. Rogelio “Roger” Maynulet, 30, who insisted at his court-martial that the shooting was a mercy killing, threw his arms around his attorneys, wife and parents after the sentencing. Maynulet could have faced 10 years in prison; prosecutors had sought a three-year term along with his dismissal from the service.

He was convicted Thursday of assault with intent to commit voluntary manslaughter in the shooting last year near Kufa, Iraq. He maintained throughout the trial that he had acted to end the suffering of a man he was told was beyond medical help.

Maynulet said after the sentencing that he was grateful to avoid imprisonment but that having to leave the military would be difficult.

“It’s bittersweet,” he said. “I’m happy to have my life back, but I’m being forced out of my family. It’s hard to leave the Army this way.”