A U.S. Army dog handler was found guilty by a jury Tuesday for abusing detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison by terrifying them with a military dog. Sergeant Michael Smith was found guilty of six of 13 counts. He faces the longest potential sentence of any soldier charged so far in the prison scandal-up to nearly 25 years in prison if convicted on all counts. The court planned an afternoon sentencing hearing. The military jury at Fort Meade, Maryland deliberated for 18 hours over three days before announcing its verdict. The prosecution contended that Smith used his dog to intimidate five prisoners for fun and competed with another canine handler to see who could frighten detainees the most. Smith's defense argued that he was a good soldier who had his dog bark at prisoners in a chaotic environment with unclear rules. The second dog handler, Sergeant Santos Cardona, will face trial in late May.
