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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
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December 15th,
2008 - Marine Pleads Not Guilty to Killing Iraq Detainee News article from the
Associated Press |
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Marine Pleads Not
Guilty to Killing Iraq Detainee From Associated Press December 15, 2008 Camp Pendleton, Calif. - A
Marine sergeant has pleaded not guilty to murdering an unarmed detainee in
the Iraqi city of Fallujah. Sgt. Jermaine Nelson entered
his plea Monday in a military courtroom at Camp Pendleton. He is charged with
unpremeditated murder and dereliction of duty in the November 2004 death. Nelson's court-martial is
scheduled to begin Jan. 5. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if
convicted of murder. Squadmate Sgt. Ryan Weemer
faces the same charges and is scheduled to be court-martialed Jan. 12. Former
squad leader Jose Nazario was acquitted this year in federal court in
Riverside of charges related to the same battle. The deaths came amid some of
the fiercest fighting of the Iraq war. Copyright © 2008 The
Associated Press. External link: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gzPwTiUpB8QQbAqRm6Mbc1Zu_AiwD953EBJO0 Marine pleads
not guilty in Fallujah killing Sgt. Jermaine Nelson accused of killing detainee during Iraq battle By Mark Walker North County Times December 15, 2008 Camp Pendleton - A Marine
accused of killing one of four unarmed detainees during a November 2004
battle for the Iraqi city of Fallujah pleaded not guilty Monday at his
arraignment in a base courtroom. Sgt. Jermaine Nelson faces a
Jan. 5 trial before a military jury on one count of unpremeditated murder and
multiple counts of dereliction of duty. Authorities say the killing
took place inside a house during the opening hours of the battle for the
insurgent-held city. Nelson's attorney, Capt.
Joseph Grimm, indicated to Lt. Col. Jeffrey Meeks, the military judge, that
Nelson will assert post-traumatic stress, sleep deprivation and lack of
responsibility. Grimm told Meeks that Nelson
was a veteran of two Iraqi deployments, the first coming during the March
2003 invasion in which Nelson took part in the march to Baghdad. Grimm and Nelson's two other
attorneys are trying to suppress statements he made to investigators. Attorneys for another man
accused in the case, Sgt. Ryan Weemer, are trying to suppress statements he
made as well. He faces the same charges as Nelson. The case developed more than
two years ago when Weemer told a Secret Service agent during a job interview
with that agency that he was aware of unlawful killings during his service in
Fallujah. The man who led the Camp
Pendleton squad from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment during the
incident, former Marine Sgt. Jose L. Nazario Jr., was tried in U.S. District
Court in Riverside earlier this year on charges he caused the deaths of the
four detainees and was responsible for shooting two of the men. The bodies of
the unidentified men were never found. A civilian jury that heard
Nazario's trial in August acquitted him. Some jurors said it was not their
place to decide the guilt or innocence of troops accused of wrongdoing during
combat. They also said the lack of physical evidence was a key factor in the
not-guilty verdict. Nazario's trial was the
first time a former service member was prosecuted in civilian court under the
Military Extraterritorial Judicial Act authorized by Congress eight years
ago. A provision of that act allows federal prosecutions of people who are
out of the military when accusations arise against them for actions taken
during their active-duty years. Nazario had left the Marine
Corps before allegations of the detainee slayings came to light. A day after his acquittal,
Nazario told the North County Times that his most vivid memory of Fallujah
was "constant fear." "We were running out of
ammo and we weren't able to clear every house," he said. "We were
moving past buildings and structures where we could have been ambushed at any
time." Nelson faces a possible life
prison sentence if convicted of unpremeditated murder, the military
equivalent of second-degree murder. Under the military justice system, it
will be the jury that decides his punishment if he is convicted. External link: http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/12/15/military/z2779777aedcfb4f78825751d007c85b1.txt |