Instead, he became a suspect, himself.

Once a soldier praised for his services, Yee was arrested on suspicion of espionage and held in solitary confinement for 76 days. He was later cleared in the investigation, but says his case should be a warning to others.

"My faith in Islam and my patriotism, my willingness to advocate for American values, diversity and religious freedom was under fire," Yee told The Associated Press in a recent phone interview from New York, where he was promoting his book, "For God and Country."

The book offers the public its first glimpse into the West Point graduate's ordeal. Yee, 37, will talk about it and his experience Monday night at the Norman Worthington Conference Center at Saint Martin's University in Lacey.

Yee converted to Islam in 1991 and had been serving as a Muslim chaplain at Fort Lewis for about five months at the time of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. He said he became the Army's poster child for what it meant to be a good Muslim, often giving presentations to explain the faith and help increase cultural awareness among military personnel.

"Many were very accepting because I was effectively able to discuss my faith from the perspective of someone who had converted," he said. "They came away with a much better understanding of Islam as a result."

His ability to relate to high-level military leaders made him a natural choice to serve at Guantanamo. Yee knew little about the detention center there. But he said he'd read about its problems, including a hunger strike among 200 prisoners after one was ordered to remove a sheet fashioned into a turban because no prayer caps were provided.

The attitudes and actions of guards at the camp "clearly stemmed from cultural ignorance," Yee writes in his book. But he was intent on improving the situation.

"I had experienced a lot of hostility after September 11. I knew how to handle it and often how to change people's minds," Yee told the AP. "That was, I believed, the essence of my role as a chaplain."

Instead, Yee came under suspicion by those who questioned his knowledge of Islam, the relationship he forged with detainees who confided in him because of their shared faith and his concerns with their treatment.

He recounts in his book how, at the time, he was aware of the suspicions, "but I believed that they were just another challenge of working at Guantanamo."

They seemed just that, and Yee continued to receive praise for his efforts. An officer evaluation report issued Sept. 8, 2003, covered his time at the camp and was the best he'd received during his army career.

Two days later he was arrested.

The government dismissed the criminal charges in March 2004. Yee returned home and received an honorable discharge in January.

Yee, who was often shackled and handcuffed, and threatened with the death penalty, said the experience was "devastating and frightening."

During his imprisonment, Yee garnered support from activist groups and some politicians, including Washington state's former Gov. Gary Locke.

"I have great admiration for Captain Yee ... and his strength during this entire ordeal," said Locke, a Democrat.

The case, Locke said, bolstered his concerns about the broad-reaching authority granted to the federal government under the Patriot Act. He said he often mentions Yee's case and that of Wen Ho Lee when talking to groups about civil liberties.

Lee, a former engineer at Los Alamos National Laboratory, was accused of spying for China, indicted on 59 counts alleging he mishandled nuclear information and subjected to solitary confinement before pleading guilty to a single charge of mishandling classified data. The government dropped the other 58 counts.

The government must proceed "very carefully and very thoughtfully" as it tries to balance national security against individuals' rights, Locke said.

"Yes, we're all concerned about terrorism. ... At the same time we cannot go around stereotyping the people of Islamic faith," Locke said.

Yee's proponents have called the soft-spoken man a symbolic casualty in the United States' war on terrorism.

"Chaplain Yee has become a national figure. People who don't follow these matters closely see him as a kind of iconic figure for the domestic dimension of the war on terrorism and the dangers our response to terrorism can impose on our own freedoms," said Eugene R. Fidell, Yee's attorney in Washington, D.C.

In a July 2004 letter, John R. Crane, an assistant inspector general at the Pentagon, said the office would investigate Yee's treatment.

But Fidell, who expected a response by this summer, said this past week that he had heard nothing.

"It's way overdue. No one from the inspector general's office has contacted me," Fidell said. "It's been silent - silent as a tomb."

When asked about the status of the investigation, the agency said it does not discuss ongoing cases.

"I hope I hear something," Yee said. "It would be good for the country that the government admits its mistake. It will restore faith in senior military leadership."

Yee continues to live in Olympia with his wife, Huda, and their 5-year-old daughter, Sarah. He's completing a master's degree in international relations at Troy State University, which has a campus near Fort Lewis.

He hopes to use his experience to educate others.

"Whatever I do, I'll hopefully be able to use what I've learned ... to continue to make positive contributions," Yee said.