Gibbs, Calvin R. Kill Team

A Firsthand Account of the Maywand District Murders and the Subsequent Military Investigation and Trials

In court, in the media, and in Hollywood films, Calvin Gibbs was portrayed as the murdererindeed, even as the psychopathbehind the "Kill Team" killings. In this book, he now presents his version of events to the public for the very first time. The present manuscript was originally written by hand, using only pen and paper, during his solitary confinement at the United States Disciplinary Barracks (USDB) in Fort Leavenworth. The USDB serves as the U.S. military's maximum-security prison. The author, Calvin Gibbs, is currently serving a life sentence for three counts of premeditated murder. Gibbs was accused ofand subsequently convicted forinstigating a series of murders involving three individuals in the Maywand District of Afghanistan; all of these acts took place in 2010. The killings were carried out by a platoon of soldiers belonging to the U.S. Army's 2nd Infantry Division. The platoon stands accused of fabricating the Rules of Engagement and staging the murders of three unarmed Afghan civilians to appear as legitimate combat actions. This case made global headlines when the U.S. Army launched its investigation into the killings. Twelve soldiers were charged, and eleven of them were convicted by courts-martial. This group of soldiers became known in the media and in pop culture as the "Kill Team." During the course of the legal proceedings, a then-26-year-old non-commissioned officer from Montana named Calvin Gibbs was identified by several of his co-defendantsas well as by their defense attorneysas the ringleader of the "Kill Team." Gibbs, who pleaded not guilty, received by far the harshest sentence: life imprisonment at Leavenworth. Some of the convicted soldiers granted the media access to their storiesincluding several who were interviewed extensively for the 2013 documentary film *The Kill Team*. Apart from his statements in court, Calvin Gibbs hasto this daynever publicly commented on the murders.