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General in Tillman case wants to defend self

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The retired general facing possible demotion for his handling of the friendly fire death of former NFL player Pat Tillman wants to defend himself before the Army board considering his case, his lawyer said.

Retired Lt. Gen. Philip R. Kensinger Jr., the three-star general who was in charge of the Army Special Operations Command when Tillman died, was censured for “a failure of leadership” and accused of lying to investigators.

“They have accused him of lying,” Kensinger’s lawyer, Charles W. Gittins, told The Fayetteville Observer. “Therefore, his credibility is key to this determination. You cannot assess credibility without seeing the person in person.”

It’s unclear whether Kensinger will be allowed to speak during the hearing, but the Army will work with him to determine how the hearing will be held, said Army spokesman Paul Boyle.

“There’s no rule on that sort of thing. It’s pretty much a procedural type of review,” Boyle said.

Boyle said the panel of three four-star generals will review Kensinger’s service and determine what rank he last successfully held. The panel will meet later this month or in early September.

Tillman, who left professional football to join the military after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, was in the 75th Ranger Regiment when he was killed in Afghanistan on April 22, 2004.

The military said officers knew within hours that the death was from friendly fire but violated regulations by not telling Tillman’s family or the public for five weeks.

Other officers received criticism, but Kensinger received the harshest treatment, his attorney said.

“Unless this is just to be a meaningless rubber-stamp exercise, we believe that he needs to be heard in person by the board so they can judge whether or not he is telling the truth when he says he told the truth to the investigators,” Gittins said.

Gittins said Kensinger has until Aug. 22 to submit information to the board, which includes three four-star generals.

Kensinger didn’t attend an Aug. 1 congressional hearing into Tillman’s death because of a previously scheduled business meeting, Gittins said.

“We informed the committee two weeks before,” the lawyer said. “If they really wanted to have his testimony, they could have taken his deposition, but they didn’t consider to do that.”