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They're investigating at least five deaths of Iraqi prisoners in connection with abuse and torture.

When this scandal first broke, I heard that something like two dozen deaths were under investigation. Thought it was strange that didn't get more press, but then, we didn't have pictures. The article above says "twenty-seven of the abuse cases involve deaths; at least eight are believed to be homicides." I'm not sure I understand what the other 19 cases are -- certainly, people can die while in US custody without it being suspicious or blameworthy, but when an abuse case "involves" death, aren't you talking about homicide? I'm also not sure what distinguishes the five cases given headline status from the other 22.

What we have, in at least one case, is not just murder but a cover-up: a prisoner was asphyxiated by an interrogator, and the surgeon's report -- "asphyxia due to smothering and chest compressions" -- glossed only as "natural causes" by the Pentagon in their official statement. Though there's no indication anybody on the inside was actually confused about what took place, I find it eerie that this means of killing someone was widely touted by the Lurid Violent Kids in my middle school (the ones who watched Faces Of Death and had ninja throwing stars) as ideal because of its untraceability. "Everyone will think you died of natural causes," they said.