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Prodigy, 21, about to become doctor
FORT CARSON, Colo., May 26 (UPI) -- A U.S. Army private has admitted he shot a Taliban commander in cold blood at a military detention center in Afghanistan.
Pfc. David Lawrence, 20, pleaded guilty to premeditated murder Wednesday at a court martial at Fort Carson, Colo., The Denver Post reported. He showed no emotion as he described opening the door of the cell where Mullah Mohebullah was being held and raising his rifle.
"I walked out, locked the cell door, and called up to highers," he said.
Col. Mark Bridges imposed a life sentence. But Bridges said Lawrence can be paroled and must be considered for release after no more than 12 1/2 years. He could be eligible for parole in as few as four years.
Bridges also reduced Lawrence to the lowest possible rank and ordered his dishonorable discharge from the military.
If he had been convicted without a plea bargain after a court martial, Lawrence could have received the death sentence or life with no parole.
The killing last October angered Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who called it an "assassination."
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