From The Desk of Melanie Dianiska

                               A Thank You to United American Patriots

How do I begin to say thank you to a group that came forward to help us when we were on our last breath of survival. My son Pfc Corey Clagett was about to walk alone before a Clemency Board who would judge his freedom, but it’s not just his freedom; it’s his life that is on the line. We felt we had run out of all options. Who would defend my son? Who is there to guide us? Who would be Corey’s voice? Who would try to bring my son home and give him back his life? Corey has been locked away for four years. He was just 21 and now will be 26 in July. Corey has lost a lot in his young age. Most don’t know the treatment he has been given, it you sicken you. Corey has suffered some of the darkest moments none of us could comprehend. He had almost given up on, trust, friendship, honor, justice and even life. I am his mother; I felt I was losing my son. His soul was broken and his heart was aching. I was living most of it with him. I felt his pain, his anger and his despair.  He had every right to feel this way. He joined the Army to better his future. He volunteered to put his life on the line for us all. Now he is fighting in a different war.. He is fighting against our own. If he had come back in a box he would have been a hero. Well, he is still my hero.

I have begged and pleaded any way I could for help…

God listen to our prayers, I don’t understand what Gods plan is, or the journey we must travel before it’s all over, but one by one he answers.

God heard my pleas, he gave us the gift of the United American Patriots & the Warrior Fund. Just weeks before the Clemency Hearing was to be held, the United American Patriots took on Corey’s case. They provided the funds for Corey to have an attorney. Things fell into place at the right moment and I know only God provided.

Timothy C. Parlatore came aboard and acted swiftly and with speed like I’ve never seen before in an attorney.

Corey and my family have our hope restored. We are able to breathe again. I know that with out the United American Patriots we would have been lost. Our names forgotten. Our lives would never be the same and our hearts would never heal. I praise the United American Patriots for all you do. It is far and few you do what you do. Our country needs to hear Corey’s story and others like him who needs help when they can’t help them selves. More people need to donate. There are so many would could afford to donate, but don’t. This is a shame because it could be them standing and feeling what we are.  I praise you for giving us a chance at life again. I praise you for choosing attorney who really care and take pride in what cause they are defending and truly caring for us as a person. I praise you because all your staff is caring, polite, on call (lol) when we need them. It gets personal for them and their kindness shows.

Most of all I thank you Major Bill Donahue for starting this origination. You saw the need that our soldiers have. You’ve seen the miscarriage of justice that many have and are going through to take a stand. With out you, without Timothy C. Parlatore, and without the ……

                                              United American Patriots

              Corey would have been forgotten … You gave him, You gave us,

                                                         HOPE !

A soldier’s mother,

Melanie Dianiska

 Dr. Mestrovic, who is a professor of sociology at Texas A&M University, and a distinguished expert witness on war crimes, has published two books about Operation Iron Triangle and Corey. The books are titled: Rules of Engagement? A Social Anatomy of an American War Crime—Operation Iron Triangle, Iraq and The Good Soldier on Trial: A Sociological Study of Misconduct by the US Military Pertaining to Operation Iron Triangle, Iraq. Both books are published by Algora and are available from Algora, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon.

 Dr. Mestrovic relies upon primary sources, sworn statements, records of trial, and a host of official documents to show, beyond any doubt, that the Army treated Corey and the other accused soldiers the same way that it treats detainees at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo. Corey and the other soldiers were deliberately sleep-deprived, chained, put into stress positions, and even forced to sleep and shower in chains. They were subjected to solitary confinement. The author quotes from the record of trial to show that Corey was charged with “disrespect,” which is a crime punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, for simply asking for a pencil so that he could draw while he was in solitary confinement. He quotes from the records of trial to show that Corey was not given Miranda warnings. He quotes CID investigators who admitted under oath that they shredded testimony they did not like and coerced, threatened, and intimidated the entire platoon of soldiers into giving testimony that CID wanted. He documents innumerable instances of misconduct by prosecutors, investigators, judges, and commanders.

In addition, Dr. Mestrovic includes numerous documents and reports which demonstrate that evidence that was favorable to Corey and the co-accused soldiers was suppressed. For example, he includes the entire report by Major Sullivan, which concluded that no crimes were committed during Operation Iron Triangle and that no charges should be pressed against Corey or any other soldier. This report was not shown to the defense attorneys until after Corey and the other soldiers were court-martialed and sent to prison.

The Good Soldier on Trial offers the most comprehensive and best-documented account of the tragic mission that was Operation Iron Triangle, of the toxic command climate that led to the tragedy, and of the egregious misconduct by the US military as they turned Corey and other soldiers into scapegoats.  The chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials, Robert Jackson, said: “The common sense of mankind demands that law shall not stop with the punishment of petty crimes by little people.” Corey and the other co-accused soldiers were the “little people” on this flawed mission who did their best to be good soldiers. Mr. Jackson also said that the law must pursue “men of station and rank who do not soil their own hands with blood.” None of the commanders who issued the unlawful order for this mission, to kill every military aged Iraqi male on sight, were ever indicted or even called to testify or be cross-examined.  Follow this link to view the book on Amazon: