Iraq vet pleads guilty to killing soldiers

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. (AP) — As family members of his victims looked on, Army Sgt. John Russell described on Monday how in 2009 he rampaged at a mental health clinic in Baghdad during the Iraq War, killing four soldiers and a Navy officer.

The testimony proved too much for one relative, who cried out and left the military court at Joint Base Lewis-McChord when Russell described killing her son.

Russell’s testimony was part of an agreement in which Russell pleaded guilty to the murders. In doing so, he’ll avoid the death sentence. His maximum sentence would be a life term. He testified Monday to persuade Army judge Col. David Conn to accept the agreement. Conn agreed.

Russell — who is from Sherman, Texas — went on a shooting spree at the Camp Liberty Combat Stress Center near Baghdad in May 2009. It was one of the worst instances of soldier-on-soldier violence in the Iraq war.

In court, Russell said he was in a “rage” when he opened fire.

Russell was nearing the end of his third tour when his behavior changed, members of his unit testified in 2009. They said he became more distant in the days before the May 11, 2009, attack and that he seemed paranoid that his unit was trying to end his career.

On May 8, Russell sought help at a combat stress clinic at Camp Stryker, where his unit was located. On May 10, Russell was referred to the Camp Liberty clinic, where he received counseling and prescription medication.

Military prosecutors say Russell left the clinic and later returned with a rifle he took from his unit headquarters and began firing.