Hearing today for officer charged with dereliction
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  1. #1

    Exclamation Hearing today for officer charged with dereliction

    Hearing today for officer charged with dereliction

    By ASSOCIATED PRESS
    Published May 8, 2007

    SAN DIEGO - The biggest U.S. criminal case involving civilian deaths in the Iraq war is heading to court with a hearing set today for a Marine officer charged with failing to properly investigate the killings of 24 Iraqis.

    Capt. Randy W. Stone, 34, is one of four officers accused of failing to report and investigate the killings. All four are charged with dereliction of duty.

    Three enlisted Camp Pendleton Marines are charged with unpremeditated murder in the case. They deny any wrongdoing, saying they responded properly to a perceived threat during a highly chaotic time.

    Today's hearing for Stone, a military attorney from Dunkirk, Md., and other hearings planned for his co-defendants will investigate whether the officers failed in their duties by not launching an investigation sooner.

    The Iraqis were killed after a roadside bomb struck a Marine patrol on the morning of Nov. 19, 2005. The blast killed one Marine and injured two others.

    Not until months later did an investigation lead to charges.

    Stone's lawyer, Charles Gittins, said his client did nothing wrong because he reported the facts to his superiors as he understood them.

    [Last modified May 8, 2007, 01:48:41]

    Ellie


  2. #2
    May 08. 2007 3:27AM

    Officer charged in Haditha killings heads to court Tuesday

    By THOMAS WATKINS
    Associated Press Writer

    There is no dispute about what happened the morning of Nov. 19, 2005 in Haditha, Iraq.

    A roadside bomb that rocked a Marine patrol killed Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas of El Paso, Texas, and injured two of his comrades. In the aftermath, five Iraqi men were shot as they approached the scene in a car and others - including women and children - died as Marines went house to house in the area, clearing homes with grenades and gunfire.

    Differences emerge on whether the Marines are guilty of murder - and whether their commanders failed to properly investigate.

    The biggest U.S. criminal case involving civilian deaths in the Iraq war is heading to court with a hearing set Tuesday at Camp Pendleton for a Marine officer charged with failing to properly investigate the killings of 24 Iraqis.

    Capt. Randy W. Stone, 34, is one of four officers accused of failing to report and investigate the killings. All four are charged with dereliction of duty. One also faces an orders violation, and another is accused of making a false official statement and obstructing an investigation.

    Three enlisted Marines are charged with unpremeditated murder in the case. They deny any wrongdoing, saying they responded properly to a perceived threat during a highly chaotic time.

    Tuesday's hearing for Stone, a military attorney from Dunkirk, Md., and other hearings planned for his co-defendants will investigate whether the officers failed in their duties by not launching an investigation sooner.

    At the Article 32 hearing, the military's equivalent of a grand jury proceeding, an officer will hear evidence and recommend whether the charges should go to trial.

    Initially, the Marines were praised for their actions in Haditha. Months later, Time magazine published a story that questioned the official version, prompting an investigation.

    A report by Army Maj. Gen. Eldon A. Bargewell said Marine officers did not deliberately cover up the incident, but it faulted the Marine chain of command for viewing civilian casualties, "even in significant numbers, as routine."

    The squad leader, Staff Sgt. Frank D. Wuterich, is charged with the unpremeditated murder of 18 of the Iraqis.

    Stone's lawyer, Charles Gittins, said his client did nothing wrong because he reported the facts to his superiors as he understood them.

    "They are saying that he should have nipped at people's heels telling them they need to investigate," Gittins said. "Everything that my client knew, they knew."

    Former military prosecutor Tom Umberg said just because superior officers do not take action "that doesn't absolve you of an obligation" to report a suspected law of war violation to military investigators.

    David Glazier, a professor at Loyola Law School Los Angeles who teaches the law of war, said high-ranking officers rely on their subordinates to feed them information and flag areas of concern.

    "If you have a suspicious circumstance, then you have a professional duty to ensure it was accurately reported," Glazier said. "They could have breached those responsibilities even if ultimately the lower-ranking individuals are found not to have committed a crime."

    Prosecutors have given at least eight other Marines immunity in return for their testimony. One, Sgt. Sanick P. Dela Cruz, initially was charged with the unpremeditated murder of five civilians.

    On the Net:

    Marine Corps Iraq Investigations: http://www.usmc.mil/lapa/iraq-investigations.htm">www.usmc.mil/lapa/iraq-in...ations.htm

    Ellie


  3. #3
    Article 32 set for Hadithah officer Tuesday
    By Thomas Watkins - The Associated Press
    Posted : Monday May 7, 2007 21:49:52 EDT

    SAN DIEGO — The biggest U.S. criminal case involving civilian deaths in the Iraq war is heading to court with a hearing set Tuesday for a Marine officer charged with failing to properly investigate the killings of 24 Iraqis.

    Capt. Randy W. Stone, 34, is one of four officers accused of failing to report and investigate the killings. All four are charged with dereliction of duty.

    Three enlisted Camp Pendleton-based Marines are charged with unpremeditated murder in the case. They deny any wrongdoing, saying they responded properly to a perceived threat during a highly chaotic time.

    Tuesday’s hearing for Stone, a military attorney from Dunkirk, Md., and other hearings planned for his co-defendants will investigate whether the officers failed in their duties by not launching an investigation sooner.

    At the Article 32 hearing, the military’s equivalent of a grand jury proceeding, an officer will hear evidence and recommend whether the charges should go to trial.

    Even if the enlisted Marines are absolved of murder, the officers still can be prosecuted for failing to properly investigate.

    The Iraqis were killed after a roadside bomb struck a Marine patrol on the morning of Nov. 19, 2005. The blast killed one Marine and injured two others.

    In the aftermath, five Iraqi men were shot as they approached the scene in a taxi and others — including women and children — died as Marines went house to house in the area, clearing homes with grenades and gunfire.

    Initially, the Marines were praised for their actions. Not until months later did an investigation lead to charges.

    The squad leader, Staff Sgt. Frank D. Wuterich, is charged with murdering 18 of the Iraqis.

    Stone’s lawyer, Charles Gittins, said his client did nothing wrong because he reported the facts to his superiors as he understood them.

    “They are saying that he should have nipped at people’s heels telling them they need to investigate,” Gittins said. “Everything that my client knew, they knew.”

    Former military prosecutor Tom Umberg said just because superior officers do not take action “that doesn’t absolve you of an obligation” to report a suspected law of war violation to military investigators.

    David Glazier, a professor at Loyola Law School Los Angeles who teaches the law of war, said high-ranking officers rely on their subordinates to feed them information and flag areas of concern.

    “If you have a suspicious circumstance, then you have a professional duty to ensure it was accurately reported,” Glazier said. “They could have breached those responsibilities even if ultimately the lower-ranking individuals are found not to have committed a crime.”

    The day after the attack, a Marine public affairs officer wrote a press release saying 15 civilians and eight insurgents died, many of them as a result of the bomb blast. Senior Marines signed off on the press release, but a Time magazine reporter who looked into the incident questioned that version of events in January 2006, starting a chain reaction that eventually led to an investigation.

    A report by Army Maj. Gen. Eldon A. Bargewell said Marine officers did not deliberately cover up the incident, but it faulted the Marine chain of command for viewing civilian casualties, “even in significant numbers, as routine.”

    Bargewell suggested Marines may not have adequately scrutinized the civilian deaths partly because of an “an attitude that portrayed noncombatants as not necessarily innocents, which may have fostered a willingness to accept reported circumstances that might otherwise appear dubious.”

    Bargewell said a two-star Marine general told him that attacks in which many civilians died “happened all the time.”

    Prosecutors have given at least eight other Marines immunity in return for their testimony. One, Sgt. Sanick P. Dela Cruz, initially was charged with the unpremeditated murder of five civilians.

    Ellie


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