One of the victims injured in the shooting at Fort Stewart was the “intimate partner of the accused,” according to the Army Office of the Special Trial Counsel, which is why the charges against Sgt. Quornelius Radford includes a specification of domestic violence.
Radford was also charged Tuesday with several counts of attempted premeditated murder, aggravated assault inflicting grievous bodily harm and aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon, the Army Office said in a news release.
Five soldiers were injured when the active-duty sergeant opened fire on his coworkers last week at the Army post in Georgia, officials said. Radford, a 28-year-old automated logistics sergeant with the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, used his personal weapon in the shooting, Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the fort’s commander, told reporters on Wednesday.
Michelle McCaskill, a spokesperson for the Army’s Office of Special Trial Counsel, which is prosecuting Radford, said a sixth soldier was shot at, but Radford missed. The Army has not released the victims’ names, and McCaskill said she did not know whether Radford’s partner was among the five people he wounded.
Fort Stewart officials have declined to comment on the shooter’s motives.
The charges were issued against Radford as made his first appearance in a military courtroom at Fort Stewart. He will be transferred to the brig at Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina after the hearing officer ordered Radford to remain in pretrial confinement.
Under military law, attempted murder carries a potential penalty of life imprisonment.
Radford was represented by Army defense attorneys at his hearing Tuesday. Phone and email messages left with Fort Stewart’s Trial Defense Service were not immediately returned.
Now that he’s been charged, Radford faces pretrial proceedings to determine whether there is enough evidence for him to stand trial by court-martial.
The largest Army post east of the Mississippi River, Fort Stewart is home to thousands of soldiers assigned to the 3rd Infantry Division. It is located about 40 miles southwest of Savannah.
Army records show Radford enlisted in 2018.
Soldiers in Radford’s unit said they followed the sound of gunfire into the hallways of an office building where they found hazy gunsmoke in the air and wounded victims on the floor and in nearby offices.
Brig. Gen. Lubas credited soldiers with saving lives by immediately rendering first aid, in some cases using their bare hands to staunch bleeding gunshot wounds.
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll visited Fort Stewart the day after the shootings to award Meritorious Service Medals to six soldiers who helped restrain the gunman and treat the victims.
contributed to this report.
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