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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
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November 17th,
2007 - High Ranking Marine Faces Haditha Trial 1st news article by
North County Times |
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High Ranking Marine Faces
Haditha Trial By Reuters November 17, 2007 The highest-ranking US
Marine charged in connection with the 2005 shooting deaths of two dozen
unarmed men, women and children in the Iraqi town of Haditha was ordered to
face court martial next April. Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani
(43), is accused of dereliction of duty for failing to properly report and
investigate the November 19th, 2005 incident at Haditha, which sparked
international condemnation of US forces in Iraq. The former battalion
commander was ordered to stand trial beginning April 28th by a military judge
sitting at Camp Pendleton base in California. If convicted, he could face
more than two years behind bars. "He's been steadfast
all the way through," Chessani's attorney, Robert Muise, told reporters.
"He's unflappable and very focused. Its been a long process, very
trying, but he's a tough man." Eight Marines were
originally charged in the highly publicized case, in which US Marines killed
24 men, women and children after their convoy was hit by a roadside bomb that
destroyed a Humvee and killed Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas. Since then, charges against
two officers and two enlisted men have been dismissed. Two others are
awaiting a decision on whether they will face court martial. Prosecutors say that the
Marines, angry over Terrazas' death, rampaged through the village, killing
five unarmed taxi passengers and 19 people in nearby houses. Defence lawyers say the
civilians died during a pitched battle with insurgents that followed the
roadside bombing. External link: http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/breaking/2007/1117/breaking7.htm Battalion
commander arraigned on Haditha charges By Mark Walker North County Times November 17, 2007 Camp Pendleton - The
highest-ranking officer accused of wrongdoing in the killing of 24 Iraqi
civilians in the city of Haditha two years ago was arraigned in a Camp
Pendleton courtroom Friday and is slated to go on trial in April. Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani,
43, appeared before Col. Steven Folsom and said he would enter a plea at a
later date to charges of willful dereliction of duty and violation of a
lawful order. Chessani said little during
the brief session other than to identify himself and answer a few basic
questions. Afterward, one of his
attorneys, Robert Muse, said at least two Marine Corps generals who were
aware of the Haditha killings but did not order a formal investigation will
be called to testify at the trial. Muse said his client, who
was relieved of his command of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment in the
wake of the 2005 Haditha killings, is steadfast. "He's
unflappable," Muse said. "He's very focused on the case, and while
it has been tiring and trying, he's a tough man." Chessani's attorneys also
reserved a decision on whether he will ask to be tried by a judge or by a
jury of his peers. A jury could consist of six to 16 members and two-thirds
of such a panel must agree in order to convict. His attorneys have
previously indicated that they would ask for a jury trial, but Muse said
after this morning's hearing that Folsom is a well-respected chief judge and
could be asked to decide the case alone. The crux of the case against
Chessani is that he failed to accurately report and investigate a possible
violation of the laws of war by Marines under his command. The veteran of
three Iraq deployments and holder of the Bronze Star medal faces up to 30
months in prison and a dismissal from the service if convicted. During a hearing this summer
that resulted in Chessani being ordered to court-martial, his attorneys
sought to make it clear that their client wasn't the only senior Marine
officer who didn't order an investigation into the Haditha killings. One of those senior
officers, Maj. Gen. Richard Huck, who had overall command of the Marine
forces in Iraq at the time, testified that he relied on reporting that came
up the chain, which said the civilian killings were "collateral
damage" arising from combat. The 24 Iraqis were killed by
members of a Camp Pendleton unit after a roadside bomb destroyed a Humvee on
the morning of Nov. 19, 2005, killing a lance corporal and injuring two other
Marines. A search for the bomb triggerman and other insurgents led to the civilian
deaths. The incident did not become
a criminal matter until a Time magazine reporter raised questions about what
had taken place. Those questions led to two
investigations, one that probed the actions of Marine commanders in the wake
of the killings and one that looked at the enlisted men responsible for the
killings. Last December, the Marine
Corps filed dereliction of duty charges against four officers and murder
charges against four enlisted men. In the time since, charges against two
officers and two enlisted men have been dismissed. Chessani is the
highest-ranking officer to face criminal charges arising from a wartime
action since the Vietnam war. Motion hearings in advance of his trial will
take place in January, February and March. Chessani's wife, Alissa, sat
behind him during the court session. The couple is expecting their sixth
child in December. The Colorado native is being
represented by a Christian-based Michigan firm, the Thomas More Law Center.
In a written statement, center president Richard Thompson said Chessani is a
victim of a malicious prosecution. "Every patriotic
American has a stake in the outcome of this case," Thompson wrote.
"A U.S. Army colonel and an Army general conducted two separate
investigations, and came to the same conclusion: There was no 'massacre' and
no 'cover-up.' Yet the government still pursued a multimillion-dollar
investigation in order to appease an antiwar politician and the 'blame
America first' media. "Now, we have the
absurd situation of Lt. Col Chessani being charged with failing to report and
investigate a crime that never occurred. Every American should be outraged at
the way this dedicated Marine and his family are being treated by the nation
he so loyally defended." The Marine Corps has said it
has spent at least $3 million prosecuting the Haditha case and the unrelated
Hamdania case, in which eight other Camp Pendleton troops were convicted of
offenses arising from the April 2006 abduction and slaying of an Iraqi man in
the village of Hamdania. External link: http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/11/17/news/top_stories/1_02_2911_16_07.txt Final Haditha hearing set to
conclude By Mark Walker North County Times November 17, 2007 Camp Pendleton - Two years
after 24 Iraqi civilians died at the hands of a Camp Pendleton squad in the
city of Haditha, the final pretrial hearing for the last of eight Marines
charged in the incident is set to conclude this afternoon. The Article 32 hearing for
the last man to reach court, 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson, will conclude with
witness testimony and closing statements from the prosecution and defense. It will then be up to the
hearing's investigative officer, Col. Michael Stahlman, to decide whether the
charges of dereliction of duty, obstruction of justice and lying to
investigators confronting Grayson merit his being ordered to trial by
military court-martial. Grayson, 26, is the most
junior of four Marine officers at Haditha when the killings occurred on Nov.
19, 2005, to face criminal charges. If ordered to trial and convicted, the
Ohio native could be sentenced to more than 10 years in prison and a
dismissal from the service. On Friday, U.S. Army Col.
Gregory Watt testified that Grayson came across as arrogant and reluctant to
share much when interviewed regarding the Haditha events. "Lt. Grayson was not
forthcoming in providing information in support of the investigation,"
Col. Watt testified. Watt interviewed more than
20 Marines at Haditha several weeks after the killings. Lt. Gen. Peter
Chiarelli, the U.S. commander in Iraq at the time, ordered the probe after a
Time magazine reporter raised questions about the military's version of
events. Marine officers had erroneously stated that 15 civilians died when
troops responded to a roadside bomb that killed a lance corporal and injured
two other Marines. Several women and children
were among the dead, killed when troops from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine
Regiment stormed a series of homes in search of the bomb triggerman and
insurgents they said were firing at them. The Marine Corps later
amended the count of 15, acknowledging that 24 Iraqis had died but suggested
several insurgents were among those killed. Still later, the service
acknowledged that it could not say that any of the slain were insurgents. One of the charges against
Grayson, an intelligence team leader at Haditha, is that he deliberately
deleted photographs of the slain Iraqis taken by one of his team members a
few hours after the incident and then misled investigators about the
existence of those pictures. Watt testified that he did
not learn until several weeks after interviewing Grayson that photos had been
taken. "I gave Lt. Grayson
multiple opportunities to provide photos," Watt said. "On at least
two occasions, he said there were no photos." Watt also said that
Grayson's sworn statement did not meet his expectations because it did not
discuss the intelligence team's role in examining the scene of the killings. But under cross-examination
from Grayson's lead attorney, Joseph Casas, Watt acknowledged that Grayson
had told him the photos were destroyed per Marine Corps policy after it was
determined none of the dead were insurgents. Watt also said Grayson never
told him about a town council meeting with the battalion commander and other
senior Marines at Haditha eight days after the civilian deaths. During that
meeting, the council presented the Marines with a document written in English
saying that a war crime had been committed and calling on the military to
launch an investigation. Watt said that if he had
known about that demand he would have suspended what was then an informal
probe, contacted Chiarelli and recommended that a formal investigation be
convened. Court testimony has shown
the initial version of events that the battalion commander, Lt. Col. Jeffrey
Chessani, reported up his chain of command did not accurately reflect the
number of civilians killed or state that the women and children were found
dead inside a bedroom. It also failed to report that there was no firm record
of any weapons being recovered. Chessani was arraigned in a
different Camp Pendleton courtroom Friday and faces trial in April for
willful dereliction of duty and violation of lawful order. The two other
officers accused of dereliction at Haditha subsequently had those charges
withdrawn. In earlier testimony this
week in Grayson's case, he was described as a superior intelligence officer
who was nominated for a Bronze Star and whose intelligence team was nominated
for a top Pentagon award. Neither of those recognitions occurred, however,
because of the criminal investigation that concluded with him facing charges. It was not clear Friday if
Grayson would make a statement or testify. The veteran of two Iraq
deployments has the option of saying nothing, testifying under oath or making
an unsworn statement. Unsworn statements are immune from cross-examination. Of the four enlisted men
charged with murder at Haditha, two have had the charges withdrawn and a
third has been ordered to trial on two counts of involuntary manslaughter. The squad leader, Staff Sgt.
Frank Wuterich, is awaiting word on whether he will face trial. A hearing
officer has recommended that 17 murder charges against him be dropped and
that he face court-martial on seven counts of negligent homicide. External link: http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/11/17/news/top_stories/1_03_3411_16_07.txt |