Former War Hero Faces Charges in Killing of Taliban Detainee, Lawyer Says

The U.S. Army reportedly plans to charge a former Special Forces major previously recognized as a war hero with murder after he spoke of killing a Taliban detainee in a 2016 Fox News interview. U.S. officials had said earlier that Special Forces Maj. Matthew Golsteyn first confessed to the killing during a polygraph test for the CIA in 2011, but the results of the polygraph test were deemed inadmissible for court. His Silver Star was revoked over that alleged confession and he was pushed out of the Special Forces. Golsteyn revisited the killing in a 2016 Fox News interview in which he said he killed the detainee, a reputed bomb-maker, to prevent him from targeting Afghans who were helping U.S. forces. Philip Stackhouse, Golsteyn’s lawyer, told the military-oriented publication Task & Purpose on Monday that he’s been informed the Army now plans to charge his client after months of legal limbo. “I’ve just heard through some colleagues that they are firing up to charge Matt in a court-martial now,” Stackhouse was quoted as saying. He said the Army has not yet officially notified him of any plans to prosecute. Both Golsteyn and his lawyer have questioned why the Army would move to charge him now after earlier declining to press charges. “If it’s true they now want to prosecute me for allegations that have already been resolved—this vindictive abuse of power must know no limit,” Golsteyn said in a statement Monday.