Charged

A former U.S. soldier was arrested and charged with killing four Iraqi civilians and raping one of the female victims, U.S. officials said on Monday.

Steven Green, 21, who was stationed in Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division, appeared in court in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is expected to be sent to Kentucky where he has been charged with the attacks that took place in March 2006 near Mahmudiya, Iraq.

Green, who faces a possible death penalty if convicted, is charged with going to a house near Mahmudiya with three other people to rape a woman living in the house, according a statement by the U.S. attorney in Kentucky.

Green allegedly shot and killed an man, a woman and a 5-year-old girl. After raping a second female, described as an adult, Green shot and killed her, the statement said.

If these charges pan out, then Green can and should spend the rest of his life in federal prison for his acts (unless the feds are going to impose the death penalty).