Abu Ghraib guard’s appeal in maltreatment case hinges on confusion over what was permissible

Abu Ghraib appeal centers on military confusion

WASHINGTON — A female soldier who was photographed at Abu Ghraib prison giving a smiling “thumbs-up” beside a pyramid of naked detainees says she hopes her appeal to the military’s highest court will exonerate all whose reputations were tarnished by the scandal.

Former Army Reserve Specialist Sabrina Harman spoke to The Associated Press before her hearing Wednesday in Washington in front of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

Her attorney told the court that Harman, of Lorton, Va., shouldn’t have been convicted of maltreatment for photographing and posing with naked detainees because prisoner nudity appears to have been Army policy.

But prosecutors say any reasonable observer would have concluded that such conduct was abusive.