Army Sgt. Quornelius Radford will face a felony-level court-martial on attempted murder, domestic violence and aggravated assault charges. (Liberty County (Ga.) Sheriffs Office)
The Army sergeant accused of opening fire on his fellow soldiers at Fort Stewart, Ga., in August will face a felony-level court-martial on attempted murder, domestic violence and aggravated assault charges, the service announced Friday.
The Army’s Office of Special Trial Counsel referred Sgt. Quornelius S. Radford’s charges to a general court-martial on Friday, Michelle McCaskill, a spokeswoman for the special trial counsel, said in a news release. Radford faces two specifications of attempted premeditated murder, four specifications of attempted unpremeditated murder, one specification of domestic violence, three specifications of aggravated assault inflicting grievous bodily harm, and three specifications of aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon.
The court-martial will be at Fort Stewart but has not yet been scheduled, McCaskill said. Radford is currently being held in pretrial confinement at the Naval Consolidated Brig Charleston on Joint Base Charleston, S.C.
Radford, 28, is accused of shooting four other members of his unit — the 703rd Brigade Support Battalion of the 3rd Infantry Division’s 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team — and a military veteran civilian on Aug. 6, inside the unit’s headquarters building. The Army initially said the victims were all soldiers.
Army officials told reporters after the shooting that other soldiers quickly responded to the attack, tackling Radford and wrestling away the personally owned pistol he is accused of using in the assault. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll awarded six soldiers the Meritorious Service Medal for their life-saving actions during the attack. The Meritorious Service Medal recognizes outstanding noncombat service and is equivalent in rank to the Bronze Star Medal.
All of the victims survived.
One of the attack victims was described as Radford’s “intimate partner,” for which he was charged with domestic violence.
Radford waived his right to an Article 32 hearing, in which a neutral Army lawyer would have examined evidence in the case to recommend if service officials should pursue a felony-level trial, McCaskill said. The Article 32 process is similar to the indictment process in civilian court proceedings.
Once Radford’s case is assigned to a military judge, the Army will set dates for his arraignment, pre-trial hearings and trial, McCaskill said.
Radford could face life imprisonment if convicted of the attempted murder charges. Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the military’s legal system, attempted crimes can carry the same amount of punishment as crimes that were committed, apart from the death penalty.
