In another small trailer not far from where Medina died, his parents and two brothers have been trying to figure out why Jose is dead and nobody's to blame.
"There's no proof he was having a flashback, which he complained about. But there's proof he bought the gun, and there's proof that he used it," said Francisco Medina, 19. "We understand he has PTSD. But does that give him the right to just go murder somebody?"
Prosecutor Ryan Joslin presented evidence that Bratcher hadn't seen many dead bodies in Iraq. And although a state psychologist concluded that Bratcher was suffering from stress disorder, another one said his responses on evaluation tests were so extreme that Bratcher could be faking it.
"When he took out his gun and shot at the victim 10 times, mostly in the back and the side of the head, as the victim was fleeing -- did he really not know what he was doing?" Joslin said. "Or was he unable to keep himself from doing it?"
The prosecutor said Bratcher's Army experience should never have been the centerpiece of the trial.
"The defense attorney spent a lot of time criticizing the military, and justifiably so. Blaming this whole issue on their failure to act and treat his PTSD," he said. "My response is: Baloney. He used it as an excuse for his actions."
Bratcher is being held at the small jail in Grant County until at least Dec. 7, when the judge will decide how to proceed. He could release Bratcher, which is unlikely, or order him admitted to Oregon State Hospital for psychiatric treatment, with regular reviews for release. Sario will argue that he should be sent to an intensive veterans' treatment program in Los Angeles that specializes in combat stress.
Bratcher gets one hour of visits a week. A month after the shooting, he and Davis got married in the jail. She is now 20.
They have a daughter named Nevaeh -- "heaven" spelled backward.
Bratcher said he prays a lot but can't seem to let go of his anger at the D.A. for having argued the case the way he did. Why was he trying to diminish the horror of what had gone on in Iraq? Did he have any idea?
Looking tired and frail as he clutched the jail phone to his ear, Bratcher said the military works to dehumanize its soldiers. "Then after they get that accomplished, they want to dehumanize the people you're fighting, the enemy. And after they've done that, they've pretty much altered your value of human life. And then you come back home."
He hung up the phone and turned to be led away by the deputies. He looked over his shoulder, like he wanted to say something else but couldn't.
