Pentagon Adopts New Rules on Detainee Deaths

NPR | By Michele Kelemen

Published June 10, 2004 at 12:00 AM EDT

The Pentagon announces new procedures for investigating the deaths of people in U.S. military custody. The new rules call for every death to be reported to military investigators and the Armed Forces medical examiner, who will decide if an autopsy is required.

The Secretary of Defense must be informed of all deaths in custody, as well. The guidelines are seen as an attempt to quell criticism of detainee deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports.

Michele Kelemen

Michele Kelemen has been with NPR for two decades, starting as NPR's Moscow bureau chief and now covering the State Department and Washington's diplomatic corps. Her reports can be heard on all NPR News programs, including Morning Edition and All Things Considered.

See stories by Michele Kelemen

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