In More Cases, Combat Trauma Is Taking the Stand - New York Times

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In More Cases, Combat Trauma Is Taking the Stand
By DEBORAH SONTAG and LIZETTE ALVAREZ
Published: January 27, 2008

When combat veterans like Mr. Gregg stand accused of killings and other offenses on their return from Iraq and Afghanistan, prosecutors, judges and juries are increasingly prodded to assess the role of combat trauma in their crimes and whether they deserve special treatment because of it.

That idea has met with considerable resistance from prosecutors and judges leery of creating any class of offenders with distinct privileges. In Mr. Gregg’s case, for instance, Judge Kornmann cautioned the jury that nobody got “a free pass to shoot somebody” because they “went to Iraq or Afghanistan or the moon.”...MORE