Damien M. Corsetti was a soldier in the United States Army.Closing Arguments Set In Fort Bliss Court-Martial
, '' KWTX'', February 23, 2006 As part of the Army's investigation into prisoner abuse at Bagram, Corsetti was charged with dereliction of duty, maltreatment, assault and performing an indecent act with another person. PFC Corsetti was later found not guilty of all charges. At the time Corsetti was a specialist in the

519th Military Intelligence Battalion The 519th Military Intelligence Battalion is a unit of the United States Army.mirror The battalion was first created in 1948. The battalion served in the Vietnam War; the Invasion of Grenada; the Invasion of Panama; Desert Storm; the Invasion o ...

, serving under Lieutenant Carolyn Wood. On May 20, 2005, Tim Golden of '' The New York Times'' published a long article on the Bagram murders based on a 2,000-page classified report to which ''The Times'' had gotten access.In US Report, Brutal Details of 2 Afghan Inmates' Deaths
, originally published by '' The New York Times'', May 21, 2005, mirrored by

Veterans for Common Sense Veterans for Common Sense (VCS), founded in 2002, is a non-profit organization dedicated to advocacy on behalf of United States veterans who continue to serve their country by protecting the rights and interests of fellow citizens. Based on the pra ...

This article contained many allegations about Corsetti's role. According to ''The New York Times'': * One of Corsetti's nickname in the unit was "Monster". He had a tattoo across his stomach of the Italian word for Monster. * Another of Corsetti's nicknames in the unit was "The King of Torture". Corsetti was large and imposing, and was called upon by other interrogators to frighten prisoners using the interrogation technique known as "

Fear up, harsh Fear is an intensely unpleasant emotion in response to perceiving or recognizing a danger or threat. Fear causes physiological changes that may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the threat. Fear i ...

". * According to one detainee Corsetti's abuse of prisoners included poking bound prisoners in the face with his naked penis and threatening them with sexual assault. * During his posting to

Abu Ghraib Abu Ghraib (; ar, أبو غريب, ''Abū Ghurayb'') is a city in the Baghdad Governorate of Iraq, located just west of Baghdad's city center, or northwest of Baghdad International Airport. It has a population of 189,000 (2003). The old road t ...

Corsetti and two other soldiers were reprimanded. Corsetti was charged on October 6, 2005.NATION IN BRIEF
, '' The Washington Post'', October 6, 2005. According to the '' National Catholic Reporter'', Corsetti's lawyer said: ''“The president of the United States doesn’t know what the rules are. The secretary of defense doesn’t know what the rules are. But the government expects this Pfc. to know what the rules are?"''Quotable and notable
, '' National Catholic Reporter'', February 24, 2006. Corsetti's court martial commenced on May 30, 2006.Trial under way for soldier in Afghan prisoner abuse case
, ''

Star Telegram The ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'' is an American daily newspaper serving Fort Worth and Tarrant County, the western half of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. It is owned by The McClatchy Company. History In May 1905, Amon G. Carter acc ...

'', May 30, 2006 Guantanamo detainee Ahmed al-Darbi, a brother-in-law of a 9/11 hijacker, claimed to be a victim of Corsetti's abuse, and was able to describe Corsetti's tattoos in detail. On 1 June 2006, a military jury found PFC Corsetti not guilty of all charges.In Final Trial, G.I. Is Acquitted of Abusing Jailed Afghans
June 2, 2006 The September 14, 2006 issue of '' The Boston Globe'' contained an Op-ed from Moazzam Begg, who described his contact with Corsetti.Guantanamo's Catch-22: defining the rules of the road
, '' The Boston Globe'', September 14, 2006 Begg described being approached by Corsetti's defense attorneys, to serve as a defense witness. Begg described Corsetti as a friend, who gave him a copy of the classic anti-war novel '' Catch-22''. Begg said that Corsetti never abused him, and would stop for friendly conversations with inmates including Omar Khadr, and that he was one of the friendly GIs who had helped him endure his imprisonment. However, Begg expressed the opinion that while Corsetti's superiors deserved a heavy load of responsibility for the abuses at Bagram and Abu Ghraib, low level soldiers like his friend Corsetti couldn't escape all responsibility if they committed illegal acts. On 2 October 2006, PFC Corsetti was honorably discharged from the United States Army. Corsetti consented to appear at a December 5, 2007 preview screening for the film '' Taxi to the Dark Side'', that is critical of the "War on Terrorism". Steven Clemons
Alex Gibney's "Taxi to the Dark Side" Really a Critique of Bush's "War on Democracy"
, ''

TPMCafe TPMCafe was a center-left blog portal created by Josh Marshall as a spin-off blog to his popular ''Talking Points Memo''. It debuted on May 31, 2005. TPM Cafe featured a collection of blogs about a wide range of domestic and foreign policy issues ...

'', December 2, 2007. Corsetti's war experience has been summarized by the Spanish journalist Pablo Pardo in the boo
''El Monstruo'' ('The Monster')
published in Spain on September 12, 2011.

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Former US interrogator Damien Corsetti recalls the torture of prisoners in Bagram and Abu Ghraib
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corsetti, Damien M. Living people United States Army soldiers Year of birth missing (living people) United States Army personnel who were court-martialed

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