thedrifter
01-01-08, 08:14 AM
Staff sergeant, lieutenant to stand trial in Hadithah deaths
By Thomas Watkins - Associated Press
Posted : Monday Dec 31, 2007 18:40:36 EST
LOS ANGELES — A staff sergeant will face a court-martial on reduced charges stemming from the killing of 24 Iraqi men, women and children in Hadithah in 2005, the Marine Corps announced Monday.
Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, 27, of Meriden, Conn., will stand trial at Camp Pendleton on charges of voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, dereliction of duty and obstruction of justice.
Earlier charges — unpremeditated murder, soliciting another to commit an offense and making a false official statement — were dismissed by Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland, commander of Marine Corps Forces Central Command.
Wuterich’s prosecution is part of the biggest U.S. criminal case involving civilian deaths to come out of the Iraq war.
In December 2006, Wuterich and three enlisted members of his squad were charged with murder, and four officers were charged with failing to investigate the deaths. Charges against several of the men were dropped following preliminary hearings over the past year and now none will face murder charges.
Also Monday, the Marine Corps announced that 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson would face a court-martial on charges of making false official statements, obstruction of justice and attempting to fraudulently separate from the Marine Corps.
Wuterich’s attorney, Mark Zaid, said his client was “disappointed but prepared” for the general’s decision and said Wuterich would plead not guilty at his arraignment early in January.
“We remain completely optimistic that he will be acquitted,” Zaid said.
Grayson’s attorney, Joseph Casas, said the government was “grasping at straws” by pursuing charges against his client and released a brief statement from his client.
“I am saddened and disappointed by my Marine Corps’ decision to come after me this way,” Grayson said in the statement. “This past year has been a crucible for my family and I, but we’re confident that 2008 will bring good things — including my full acquittal.”
Grayson, an intelligence officer, was not present at the scene of the killings, but is accused of telling a sergeant to delete photographs of the dead from his digital camera.
The deaths occurred Nov. 19, 2005, after a roadside bomb hit a Marine convoy, killing the driver of a Humvee and wounding two other Marines. Wuterich and a squad member, Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz, allegedly shot five men by a car at the scene. Wuterich then ordered his squad into several houses, where they cleared rooms with grenades and gunfire, killing unarmed civilians in the process. Wuterich was initially charged with the murder of 17 of those killed.
“Helland made his decision after consideration of information developed from investigations by Marine, Army and Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigators,” Marine spokesman Lt. Col. Sean Gibson said.
Wuterich faces a sentence of up to 160 years in prison if convicted of all counts, Gibson said, though experts say such an outcome is extremely unlikely.
Gary Solis, a former Marine Corps prosecutor and judge who teaches law of war at Georgetown University Law Center, said a military jury may assess Wuterich’s case leniently because the killings came in the aftermath of an insurgent attack.
“I can see a military jury acquitting the kid because he is going to say, ‘We were taking fire,’” Solis said. “There was no pre-event planning, there was no conspiracy to commit a crime. They are being charged for what the Marine Corps sees as culpably bad decisions under fire.”
At his preliminary hearing, Wuterich said he regretted the loss of civilian life in Hadithah, but said he believed he was operating within military combat rules when he ordered his men to assault the buildings.
“Based on the information I had at the time, based on the situation, I made the best decisions I could have at that time,” Wuterich said at his preliminary hearing. “Engaging was the only choice.”
Wuterich also said he will “always mourn the unfortunate deaths of the innocent Iraqis who were killed during our response to that attack.”
Three high-ranking Marines have been censured for failing to investigate the killings. Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, former commanding general of the 2nd Marine Division, his chief of staff, Col. Robert G. Sokoloski, and Col. Stephen W. Davis received letters of censure for not probing the deaths. A letter of censure is the military’s most severe administrative punishment.
Associated Press writer Chelsea J. Carter contributed to this report.
Ellie
By Thomas Watkins - Associated Press
Posted : Monday Dec 31, 2007 18:40:36 EST
LOS ANGELES — A staff sergeant will face a court-martial on reduced charges stemming from the killing of 24 Iraqi men, women and children in Hadithah in 2005, the Marine Corps announced Monday.
Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, 27, of Meriden, Conn., will stand trial at Camp Pendleton on charges of voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, dereliction of duty and obstruction of justice.
Earlier charges — unpremeditated murder, soliciting another to commit an offense and making a false official statement — were dismissed by Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland, commander of Marine Corps Forces Central Command.
Wuterich’s prosecution is part of the biggest U.S. criminal case involving civilian deaths to come out of the Iraq war.
In December 2006, Wuterich and three enlisted members of his squad were charged with murder, and four officers were charged with failing to investigate the deaths. Charges against several of the men were dropped following preliminary hearings over the past year and now none will face murder charges.
Also Monday, the Marine Corps announced that 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson would face a court-martial on charges of making false official statements, obstruction of justice and attempting to fraudulently separate from the Marine Corps.
Wuterich’s attorney, Mark Zaid, said his client was “disappointed but prepared” for the general’s decision and said Wuterich would plead not guilty at his arraignment early in January.
“We remain completely optimistic that he will be acquitted,” Zaid said.
Grayson’s attorney, Joseph Casas, said the government was “grasping at straws” by pursuing charges against his client and released a brief statement from his client.
“I am saddened and disappointed by my Marine Corps’ decision to come after me this way,” Grayson said in the statement. “This past year has been a crucible for my family and I, but we’re confident that 2008 will bring good things — including my full acquittal.”
Grayson, an intelligence officer, was not present at the scene of the killings, but is accused of telling a sergeant to delete photographs of the dead from his digital camera.
The deaths occurred Nov. 19, 2005, after a roadside bomb hit a Marine convoy, killing the driver of a Humvee and wounding two other Marines. Wuterich and a squad member, Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz, allegedly shot five men by a car at the scene. Wuterich then ordered his squad into several houses, where they cleared rooms with grenades and gunfire, killing unarmed civilians in the process. Wuterich was initially charged with the murder of 17 of those killed.
“Helland made his decision after consideration of information developed from investigations by Marine, Army and Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigators,” Marine spokesman Lt. Col. Sean Gibson said.
Wuterich faces a sentence of up to 160 years in prison if convicted of all counts, Gibson said, though experts say such an outcome is extremely unlikely.
Gary Solis, a former Marine Corps prosecutor and judge who teaches law of war at Georgetown University Law Center, said a military jury may assess Wuterich’s case leniently because the killings came in the aftermath of an insurgent attack.
“I can see a military jury acquitting the kid because he is going to say, ‘We were taking fire,’” Solis said. “There was no pre-event planning, there was no conspiracy to commit a crime. They are being charged for what the Marine Corps sees as culpably bad decisions under fire.”
At his preliminary hearing, Wuterich said he regretted the loss of civilian life in Hadithah, but said he believed he was operating within military combat rules when he ordered his men to assault the buildings.
“Based on the information I had at the time, based on the situation, I made the best decisions I could have at that time,” Wuterich said at his preliminary hearing. “Engaging was the only choice.”
Wuterich also said he will “always mourn the unfortunate deaths of the innocent Iraqis who were killed during our response to that attack.”
Three high-ranking Marines have been censured for failing to investigate the killings. Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, former commanding general of the 2nd Marine Division, his chief of staff, Col. Robert G. Sokoloski, and Col. Stephen W. Davis received letters of censure for not probing the deaths. A letter of censure is the military’s most severe administrative punishment.
Associated Press writer Chelsea J. Carter contributed to this report.
Ellie