US soldier gets 3 years for Afghan killing spree

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD: A member of a rogue US Army unit has been sentenced to three years' prison after pleading guilty to killing an unarmed Afghan civilian in US custody in May 2010.

Specialist Adam Winfield, 23, of Coral Gables, Fla., had been charged with premeditated murder, aggravated assault and conspiracy to commit murder in several incidents, including the deaths of three Afghan civilians in Kandahar Province.

He pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of involuntary manslaughter in military court, along with one count of illegal use of marijuana, in exchange for his testimony against other soldiers accused in the killings. On Friday, his rank was reduced to private and Winfield was stripped of pay and allowances, as well as discharged for bad conduct. The Coral Gables,
Florida man will get credit for the approximately 507 days he has already served in prison.

Winfield's defense attorney, Eric Montalvo, said he felt the sentence was fair.