N.C. paratrooper makes plea deal in Virginia soldier’s death

FORT BRAGG, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina-based paratrooper charged after he helped subdue a fellow soldier who later died has agreed to a plea bargain that could give him 30 days in jail and dock his pay.

The Fayetteville Observer reported Friday that Spc. Joseph Misuraca of Harper Woods, Mich., is the fourth soldier to make a deal in to charges following the death of Pfc. Luke Brown last year. Seven soldiers were originally charged with involuntary manslaughter.

The 27-year-old from Fredericksburg, Va., died after a night of drinking with men from his 82nd Airborne Division unit.

Witnesses said Brown ran wildly from the bar into nearby woods, where his fellow soldiers punched, kicked and choked him into submission. He died after returning to their Fort Bragg barracks.