|
The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
|
July 25th,
2007 - Hearing Wraps for Marine Accused of Killing Women, Children |
|
Hearing Wraps
for Marine Accused of Killing Women, Children By Teri Figueroa North County Times July 25, 2007 10:44 PM PDT Camp Pendleton - The fate of
a Camp Pendleton Marine who said he and squad mates stormed two Iraqi homes and
opened fire on people who turned out to be civilians was put in the hands of
a military hearing officer Wednesday. Prosecutors in a base
courtroom told the officer, similar to a judge, that Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum
knew he was targeting women and children, and should be punished for his role
in what has become the largest prosecution of war crimes to come out of Iraq
since the U.S. invaded that country in 2003. Tatum's attorneys argued his
actions were proper battlefield decisions, that he was following his training
- and that he never knew women and very young children were at the other end
of his gun. "You can't sit back in
an air-conditioned room at Camp Pendleton and second-guess these men. It's
20/20 hindsight," argued Jack Zimmermann, a Houston civilian attorney
representing Tatum. The women and children who
died in that room were among the 24 Iraqis killed by Marines in the aftermath
of a roadside bomb that killed a buddy in the village of Haditha. Tatum and
two other enlisted Marines - Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich and Lance Cpl. Justin
Sharratt - face homicide charges in the Haditha incident. On Wednesday, after seven
days of testimony in Tatum's case, attorneys on both sides made closing
arguments to a military officer who will evaluate the case and recommend to
Lt. Gen. James Mattis whether Tatum should be sent to court-martial for
murder and other charges. Prosecutors contend that
Camp Pendleton-based Marines raided four homes and killed Iraqis in
retaliation for the death of Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas and the wounding of
two others in the convoy less than an hour after sunrise. The case may turn on the
rules of when troops are allowed to shoot to kill. The military officer
overseeing the hearing, Lt. Col. Paul Ware, asked both sides to submit
written arguments about the role of rules of engagement in Tatum's case. He
will issue his recommendation sometime after that. In his closing argument, Lt.
Col. Paul Atterbury said Tatum went for his gun too quickly. "In an effort to avoid unnecessary
suffering of innocents, you are not permitted to go straight to deadly
force," the military prosecutor said. Atterbury dismissed the
contention that Tatum didn't know he was shooting at women, at kids. "Quite frankly, you
don't need that much visibility to identify a group of children on a
bed," Atterbury said. Atterbury also pointed to
statements that agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service say
Tatum made, including three separate admissions that he knew he was shooting
at children. On Tuesday, Tatum told Ware
in an unsworn statement that he never knew who his targets were. Tatum and his co-defendants
maintain they were the target of enemy gunfire after the explosion and ran
into the homes in pursuit of their attackers. "The central issue here
is lack of criminal intent," defense attorney Zimmermann said. He argued that it will be
crucial to look at Tatum's point of view during the chaotic situation the day
of the killings. Tatum, he said, was told by
senior Marines to attack the house, which had been declared hostile. He was
also justified in joining Marines in pursuing someone spotted running toward
a neighboring home, entering that home and shooting, Zimmerman said. Marines are taught that they
may use deadly force in such situations, he said. External link: http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/07/26/military/7_72_337_25_07.txt |