JACKSONVILLE, N.C. - The Marine Corps has denied clemency to a Marine who pleaded guilty in the death of an Iraqi policeman but is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.The decision came despite pleas from his Navy doctor to release him because confinement is aggravating his mental condition.

Pvt. Jonathan A. Phillips pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of the policeman in Saqlawiyah, Iraq, in 2007. Before the shooting, Phillips was sent for psychiatric evaluations three times. Each time, he was proclaimed fit for duty and returned to his unit.

"I have no concerns that Pvt. Phillips is a threat to anyone or himself, but I am concerned about the emotional impact of continued incarceration. I suspect that prolonged incarceration will also lead to a more protracted, complicated recovery," wrote his Navy doctor, Lt. S.J. Stephens, in his clemency petition.

Stephens treated Phillips, a 22-year-old infantry rifleman from Middlesex, Massachusetts, until April when he was deployed to Guantanamo Bay.

Phillips' unit was a week away from finishing its deployment when the Jan. 20, 2007, incident occurred.

The tour in western Iraq had been bloody and several members of the unit were killed. One of his roommates was burned alive, according to court testimony. Stephens said Phillips told him he didn't want to leave his unit short-handed, so he kept coming back despite his mental problems.

According to testimony in his Sept. 2007 hearing, Phillips had gone onto the roof of an Iraqi police station after his unit heard an explosion.

Two marked police vehicles pulled up in front of the station and the victim - identified only by his first name, Monthir, to protect his family - got out of one of the cars. Phillips shot Monthir in the chest, according to testimony.

Phillips is scheduled to get out of prison in September. McNeil said he will likely return to the Wounded Warrior Battalion at Camp Lejeune so he can get a medical discharge.