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March 5th,
2008 - Judge Rejects Murtha Deposition Request News article by the Associated
Press |
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Judge Rejects Murtha
Deposition Request By Chelsea J. Carter Associated Press March 5, 2008 San Diego - Attorneys for a
Marine officer facing court-martial on charges he mishandled the aftermath of
the deaths of 24 Iraqis may not force a Pennsylvania congressman to testify
in the case, a military judge ruled. Attorneys for Lt. Col.
Jeffrey R. Chessani want to question Rep. John Murtha over his public
statement that the Marines killed "in cold blood" during the attack
in Haditha. Murtha said he had been briefed by the highest levels of the
military about the case and that officers covered it up. Chessani's attorneys, who
released the ruling Wednesday, said they will appeal if the judge doesn't
reconsider. Chessani is the
highest-ranking U.S. serviceman to face a combat-related court-martial since
the Vietnam War. "When the congressman
said he was briefed by the highest levels, we need to know who they
are," said Brian Rooney, Chessani's civilian defense attorney. Rooney said Murtha's
deposition would "confirm what he said to the press is accurate." Murtha's spokesman, Matthew
Mazonkey, said the congressman had no comment. A telephone call to a Marine
Corps spokesman was not immediately returned. Chessani has been charged
with dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order on allegations that
he mishandled the aftermath of the Nov. 19, 2005, shooting deaths in Haditha. He faces court-martial on
April 28. If convicted on all counts, he faces up to three years in prison. Four enlisted Marines were
initially charged with murder in the case and four officers were charged with
failing to investigate the deaths. Charges against several of the men have
been dropped, and none will face murder charges. Copyright © 2008 The
Associated Press. External link: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hNUaTPsL6OBHarjCDUGxJ0EYsm9AD8V7HK201 Judge won’t
dismiss charges against Haditha commander Case against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani on track for April 28 court-martial By Mark Walker North County Times March 5, 2008 Camp Pendleton - A military
judge has refused to dismiss charges against the highest-ranking officer
accused of wrongdoing after the killing of two dozen Iraqi civilians in the
city of Haditha two years ago. The judge, Col. Stephen
Folsom, rejected attempts by attorneys for Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani to throw
out the case or order that a new pretrial investigative hearing take place to
determine whether the charges against Chessani should stand. Chessani was the battalion
commander at Haditha when a squad of Camp Pendleton Marines killed the
civilians after a roadside bombing and small-arms attack on Nov. 19, 2005. The civilian deaths occurred
as troops searched for their attackers. Those killings and the actions of
commanders in the aftermath have led to the largest criminal case against
Marines since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. One of Chessani's attorneys,
Brian Rooney, said Wednesday that Folsom also has refused to allow a
deposition to be taken from U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa. The defense is
seeking to depose Murtha as part of its motion to have the case dismissed,
arguing that the charges resulted from "undue command influence." Murtha said the Marines had
"killed in cold blood" after receiving a briefing from a Marine
commander. The judge also refused to
grant the defense access to the computer hard drives of commanders above
Chessani that contained e-mail messages about the incident. Chessani's
attorneys contend those messages show that their client had fully reported
what he knew and that commanders far above him, including at least two
generals, had concluded that no formal investigation into the civilian deaths
was required. "That was the most
stunning part of the ruling," Rooney said. "We intend to file a
motion asking the judge to reconsider that, because the essence of the case
is all about the reporting." Chessani, who commanded Camp
Pendleton's 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment at Haditha in November 2005,
is charged with dereliction of duty and failing to accurately report and
thoroughly investigate a possible war crime. He is scheduled to go on trial
by military court-martial on April 28. Two Marines under his
command, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich and Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum, face
courts-martial this spring on manslaughter charges in the civilian deaths. Richard Thompson, chief
counsel of the Christian-based Thomas More Law Center of Ann Arbor, Mich.,
which is representing Chessani, said the pretrial rulings against Chessani
and the prosecution itself "stink to high heaven." "Denying us the right
to take Murtha's deposition so that we could show undue command influence, as
well as denial of our request for production of documents in the possession
of Lt. Col. Chessani's superiors, makes it impossible for us to render this
loyal Marine officer the effective assistance of counsel he deserves,"
Thompson said in a written statement. "They are attempting to throw him
under the bus." A second officer also
accused of wrongdoing at Haditha, 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson, has been in a Camp Pendleton
courtroom this week for a motion hearing in advance of his trial. The weightiest of the issues
in that hearing is a defense contention that the military discharged Grayson
last year - and thus has no jurisdiction to try him at a court-martial, said
Grayson's attorney, Joseph Casas, during a break in the hearing Wednesday. "It's a critical and
interesting motion," Casas said. "We are saying this court-martial
is not proper." According to Casas, the
military is saying it was a mistake when they discharged Grayson from the
Marine Corps in June, and then tried to recall him to active duty 13 days
later. Grayson is charged with
obstruction of justice and lying to investigators. The obstruction charge
centers on Grayson ordering a sergeant to destroy photographs of the dead
Iraqis, a directive that he told investigators was consistent with the Marine
Corps' policy in Iraq in 2005. Staff writer Teri Figueroa
contributed to this report. External link: http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/03/06/military/12_49_513_5_08.txt |