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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
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September 26th,
2008 - Pa. Marine Sues Rep. Murtha Over Haditha Comments |
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Pa. Marine Sues
Rep. Murtha Over Haditha Comments By Ramesh Santanam Associated Press September 26, 2008 Pittsburgh - A former Marine
sued Rep. John Murtha for slander on Thursday, saying the congressman damaged
his reputation by saying he and his comrades killed women and children
"in cold blood" in Haditha, Iraq, in November 2005. Former Lance Cpl. Justin
Sharratt filed the federal lawsuit in Pittsburgh. Sharratt claims the
comments the high-ranking Pennsylvania Democrat made on news shows in May
2006 also violated his constitutional rights to due process and presumption
of innocence. "Sharratt, in being
labeled repeatedly by Murtha as a 'cold-blooded murderer,' and by Murtha
outrageously claiming that the Haditha incident was comparable to the
infamous (My Lai) massacre of Vietnam, has suffered permanent, irreversible
damage to his reputation," the lawsuit states. Military prosecutors have
said two dozen Iraqis, including women and children, were killed in Haditha
on Nov. 19, 2005, after one Marine died and two others were wounded by a
roadside bomb. Murtha, a former Marine and decorated Vietnam War veteran,
spoke out about the killings, saying that troops in Iraq were being put under
too much pressure. Sharratt, 24, of the
Pittsburgh suburb of Canonsburg, was initially charged with three counts of
premeditated murder but was exonerated after a full investigation and a
hearing. He was honorably discharged last year. Sharratt said he has
received hate e-mails and been called a "baby killer" when he goes
out in Canonsburg. Murtha's office said the
congressman had no comment on the lawsuit. Sharratt is the second Marine
to sue Murtha over his comments about Haditha. Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, the
only person still facing charges in the Haditha case, sued Murtha for
defamation in 2006. That lawsuit is pending. In his lawsuit, Sharratt
accuses Murtha of repeatedly saying on CNN, NBC and other outlets that
Sharratt and his fellow Marines "overreacted because of the pressure on
them and killed innocent civilians in cold blood." Murtha said the Haditha
killings were comparable to the March 1968 My Lai massacre, when American
servicemen killed as many as 504 Vietnamese villagers, Geary said in a
statement. Sharratt and Geary denied
any civilians were killed on purpose, and Sharratt said he didn't witness any
civilian deaths. Sharratt and his father, Darryl, said that he killed three
insurgents, two armed with assault rifles and a third about to retrieve a
rifle. Murtha didn't name Sharratt,
but media members were able to identify him from the congressman's comments
and other information, said the Sharratt's attorney, Noah Geary, at a news
conference Thursday afternoon. Four enlisted Marines,
including Sharratt, were originally charged for their roles in the killings
and four officers were charged in connection to the investigation. One
officer was acquitted and charges have since been dropped against everyone
else except Wuterich, whose case is pending. Wuterich, of Meriden, Conn.,
has pleaded not guilty to charges of voluntary manslaughter. He is accused of
ordering his men to clear several houses with grenades and gunfire, leading
to the deaths of women and children. An 18-term congressman,
Murtha was hawkish on war issues for decades but has come to believe the U.S.
should leave Iraq as soon as possible. He is known for bringing money and
jobs, especially in the defense industries, to his district in rural
Pennsylvania. He faces Republican William
T. Russell, a career Army member who left the service two years short of
retirement, in the November election. Russell has run campaign ads
criticizing Murtha for his comments about Haditha. Associated Press writer Joe
Mandak contributed to this story. Copyright © 2008 The
Associated Press. External link: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5WevvJUXQrfbMEFvMlEojd7tA6wD93DVLEO1 |