Military jury deliberates in case of Georgia soldier accused homicide

DONGDUCHEON, SOUTH KOREA - A U.S. military jury began deliberations Wednesday in the court martial of an American soldier whose armored vehicle struck and killed two South Korean girls. <br> <br> Sgt. Fernando Nino, the vehicle commander, faces up to six years in a U.S. prison if convicted of negligent homicide in the deaths of the 14-year-old girls on June 13 near the border with North Korea. <br> <br> After a verdict is delivered, Nino&#39;s driver, Sgt. Mark Walker of Acworth, Ga., will be tried on the same charge. South Korean activists have held protests to demand that the two men be tried in a South Korean court. <br> <br> In a closing statement, prosecutor Capt. Sean Kilkenny said Nino wasn&#39;t paying attention and ``did not use all means necessary&#39;&#39; to avoid the deaths of Shim Mi-son and Shin Hyo-sun. <br> <br> But the defense lawyer, Maj. Robert Broughton, said there was no evidence that Nino was not paying attention and that he had tried in vain to warn Walker through the vehicle&#39;s defective communication system. <br> <br> The trial is being held at Camp Casey, a U.S. military base north of Seoul. <br> <br> Nino, whose hometown was not released, and Walker belong to the 2nd U.S. Infantry Division. <br> <br> Under a bilateral defense treaty, the U.S. military has jurisdiction over American soldiers accused of crimes while on duty, though it can allow South Korea to try them on a case-by-case basis. There are 37,000 American soldiers based in South Korea.