Spec. Rivera’s sworn statement verifies that the troops were concerned for their safety because all this activity on the west side originated from a “known firing spot,” in other words, a place where the Taliban have been known to fire against First Platoon in the past. The direction is significant. The east is the direction from which the motorcycle charge occurred moments earlier—the same motorcycle charge that Lieutenant Lorance had ordered his troops to fire upon. This coordination of forces in the west and then the east of the village underscores the likelihood that the platoon had
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