Andrew Holmes is one of nine warriors United American Patriots is currently assisting financially with legal defense fees and personal needs. We are committed to making sure Andrew and his lawyers get what they need in order to have the best chance at justice, so he will be able to rejoin his family as quickly as possible.

Over the last eighteen months, a tremendous toll has been extracted from Andy’s family; especially his mother, Dana Holmes. She has tried to remain strong and be Andy’s voice to the public throughout this ordeal, but is now emotionally, financially and physically exhausted.

When the press first learned of Andy’s situation a year and a half ago, Dana was inundated with phone calls and visits to her place of employment. Her employer did not like the intrusion on their business, and she soon lost her job. With the current job environment, Dana has been unable to find employment.

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Pfc. Andrew Holmes on Friday received a 7-year prison sentence for the January 2010 murder of a teenage villager in southern Afghanistan.

By Hal Bernton

Seattle Times staff reporter

Pfc. Andrew Holmes on Friday received a 7-year sentence for the 2010 murder of a teenage villager in southern Afghanistan.

“The remorse and regret I feel is the most overwhelming emotion that I have ever endured,” Holmes said Friday in tearful remarks before the sentencing. “This feeling has never subsided in the 21 months since it occurred.”

Holmes was 19 at the time of the killing, and is the youngest of five Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldiers accused of taking part in the murder of three Afghans while on 2010 patrols with their platoon from the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. [Read more...]

From The News Tribune

By: ADAM ASHTON; staff writer

Two generals who oversaw the training for a troubled Stryker brigade told an Army investigator that they regretted not removing the brigade commander before the unit left for Afghanistan, according to a defense witness who has studied the investigation and who testified Wednesday in court at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

“The brigade was dysfunctional,” said Texas A&M sociology professor Stjepan Mestrovic. He testified on behalf of Spc. Jeremy Morlock, who pleaded guilty to murdering three Afghan civilians during his deployment with the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division last year.

Mestrovic’s description was the first public discussion of the report. It was commissioned last fall by Lewis-McChord commander Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti to investigate whether officers should have known that enlisted soldiers were using drugs and carrying out schemes to murder civilians after deploying to southern Afghanistan in July 2009. [Read more...]

A report from Attorney Daniel Conway:

United American Patriots,

Major Bill Donahue and Heather Fields

Thanks again for all of your tremendous support over the years.

Here is an update on Evan Vela’s case. The government has responded to our appellate brief. We are simply waiting for the Army Court of Criminal Appeals to either order oral arguments or to render a decision. We do not know when that will be, but we expect a decision soon. Evan’s appellate brief was well-done and raised a number of important legal issues. The brief was 50 pages long. We challenged whether the facts were sufficient to support a conviction on all charges. We are also challenging whether the government violated his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination by forcing him to testify under oath twice and then prosecuting him for murder. We also raised a number of procedural issues related to the selection of the jury and presence of the Iraqi Minister for Human Rights at the trial. As I’m sure you are aware, nearly the entire jury pool came from the general’s headquarters. It was a truly conflicted jury.

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United American Patriots,

 Major Bill Donahue and Heather Fields

Thanks again for all of your tremendous support over the years.   

Here is an update on Evan Vela’s case.  The government has responded to our appellate brief.  We are simply waiting for the Army Court of Criminal Appeals to either order oral arguments or to render a decision.  We do not know when that will be, but we expect a decision soon.  Evan’s appellate brief was well-done and raised a number of important legal issues.  The brief was 50 pages long.  We challenged whether the facts were sufficient to support a conviction on all charges.  We are also challenging whether the government violated his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination by forcing him to testify under oath twice and then prosecuting him for murder.  We also raised a number of procedural issues related to the selection of the jury and presence of the Iraqi Minister for Human Rights at the trial.  As I’m sure you are aware, nearly the entire jury pool came from the general’s headquarters.  It was a truly conflicted jury. 

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