The lawyer for an airman who is on trial for allegedly murdering his roommate at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam says the airman acted in self-defense, according to a report.
The Shreveport Times in Louisiana reported Thursday that the defense attorney for Airman 1st Class Isaiah Edwards told a panel of seven Air Force service members, serving as a jury in the court-martial, that Edwards did stab A1C Bradley Hale to death in the middle of the night on March 27, 2018.
However, the attorney, Paul Stafford, said in his opening statement the evidence will show Edwards killed Hale in self-defense.
Edwards is being tried at the federal district court in Shreveport. The Shreveport Times reported that Stafford said Edwards will testify in his own defense.
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Edwards and Hale were both electronic warfare journeymen based at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, but were temporarily assigned to the 2nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron in Guam.
The Shreveport Times also said a suitemate, Senior Airman Charles Jordan, testified he and his roommate were awoken by screams shortly after 2 a.m. that morning. They entered Edwards' and Hale’s room through a common bathroom and saw Edwards on top of Hale. Jordan testified he and his roommate left to go get help.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.
