A military judge in the case of a Canadian captive at Guantanamo on Thursday again banned a general at the Pentagon from acting as a legal adviser because of a perception that he favors the prosecution.
In his ruling, Army Col. Patrick J. Parrish did not stop the Oct. 8 terror trial of Omar Khadr, 22. Khadr, who was captured at age 15, allegedly threw a grenade that killed a U.S. commando during a 2002 firefight in Afghanistan.
But the judge said Air Force Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Hartmann appears to have lost his neutrality in his role as the Pentagon's legal advisor to military commissions.
Parish becomes the third judge to disqualify Hartmann from a role at the trials. He still has legal advisor status in 14 other cases, although defense lawyers have filed other so-called ''unlawful influence'' motions seeking his disqualification in several others.
Hartmann took charge of the system a little over a year ago and has emerged a relentless, aggressive champion who has said his behavior was necessary to kick-start a sputtering legal system.
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