CAMP PENDLETON, Calif., Aug. 2, 2007
Marine Convicted Of Murdering Iraqi
Squad Leader Faces Life In Prison For Shooting Man During Unsuccessful Search For Insurgent
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Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III, 23, had been charged with premeditated murder but premeditation was stricken from the verdict that was returned by a military jury.
Hutchins was also convicted of conspiracy to commit murder, making a false official statement and larceny. He was acquitted of kidnapping, assault and housebreaking.
There is no mandatory minimum sentence for unpremeditated murder. The maximum is life in prison without parole.
Hutchins stood rigidly and stared straight ahead in the silent courtroom as the verdict was read.
The victim was pulled from his home in April 2006 and shot in a ditch, with an AK-47 and shovel placed nearby to make him look like an insurgent planting a bomb, according to the prosecution.
In another base courtroom, meanwhile, a sentencing hearing was under way for a member of the squad convicted on Wednesday of conspiracy and lesser crimes but acquitted of premeditated murder and kidnapping.
Cpl. Marshall Magincalda, 24, faced up to life in prison, but no mandatory minimum sentence. He was also found guilty of larceny and housebreaking, and cleared of making a false official statement.
Magincalda was not accused of firing any shots, but was charged with murder for participating in the plot.
All eight members of the squad were initially charged with murder and kidnapping.
Four lower-ranking Marines and a Navy corpsman cut deals with prosecutors in exchange for their testimony and received sentences ranging from one to eight years in prison.
A jury last month acquitted another corporal of murder but convicted him of conspiracy to commit murder and kidnapping. According to testimony, Cpl. Trent Thomas had greater involvement in the killing than Magincalda. Thomas was sentenced to a reduction in rank and a bad-conduct discharge but no prison time.
The squad was pulled from the battlefield after the slaying in the Anbar province town.
Prosecutors said that during a nighttime patrol, the squad hatched a plan to kidnap a suspected insurgent from his house and kill him. When they could not find him, they instead kidnapped a man from a neighboring house, dragged him to a hole and shot him, the prosecution said.
Several witnesses testified the plot was born out of frustration after suspected insurgents kept evading prosecution.
Prosecutors singled out Hutchins as the ringleader, and testimony from the more junior troops seemed to focus on him and, to a lesser extent, his two corporals.
Magincalda was accused of being part of the four-man "snatch team" that seized the victim from his home. His attorneys contended he wanted no part in the conspiracy and told the squad he would not shoot anyone.
Hutchins' attorneys claimed he participated in the plot because his officers had set a poor leadership example and given approval for Marines to use violence in capturing and interrogating suspected insurgents.
© MMVII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
What he did was inexcusable and unforgivable. It was cold blooded murder. It was not fog of war or an unintended civilian casualty. They dragged someone out of their house that they knew was not who they were looking for and murdered him, unarmed, in a ditch. What he did was not the actions of an American soldier. It was the actions of a Nazi or Japanese soldier during WWII. It was the actions of a murderer.
He should have been sentenced to death.
Re: "The victim was pulled from his home in April 2006 and shot in a ditch, with an AK-47 and shovel placed nearby to make him look like an insurgent planting a bomb, according to the prosecution."
If the soldier dragged an innocent man out of his home, executed him, and planted evidence in an effort to cover up what he had done, it sounds an awful lot like premeditated murder to me.
The current military justice system is a shameful joke, dealing out hand-slaps to low-ranking soldiers in an obvious attempt to mask the over-arching war crimes of top military commanders and illegitimate civilian officials.
Re: "Although I do not condone his actions in any way, shape, or form, I wonder if Bush and company should be held in complicity for placing these young folks in such, what has to be, a frustrating situation?"
I would absolutely agree with this. The Bush regime and their collaborators bear ultimate responsibility. Even this soldier can be seen as a victim of their crimes. Even this soldier is also entitled to an apology from the regime.
I am in favor of leniency for any soldier that provides information leading to the conviction of top-level military military commanders or Bush regime officials.
Re: "Marine Convicted Of Murdering Iraqi"
I wonder how many months he will serve in prison?
Will he still be elligable for a Medal of Freedom?
Certainly Bush bears some responsibility for having our troops dying in vain in Iraq. That said if there is any additional fault here it should be the the marine Corp for not weeding people out better or for not training them better. One can argue mitigation if this happened during a fire fight or even in a moment of rage, but these soldiers got up in the middle of the night, on there own, without orders and went looking for this insurgent with the purpose of killing him. When they couldn't find him the selected a civilian, a know non-combatant, at random, dragged him to a ditch and shot him in cold blood. This is murder in a theater of war or the streets of any American city. They knew it too since they attempted to cover it up by planting a weapon on the dead man. This marine should get no more pity then we'd give to a cop that shot and murdered a citizen at random out of "frustration".
They deliberately LIED us into this needless War OF Terror. That makes them guilty for all the death and destruction that has followed.
Yes the President and VP are mass murderers. If you want to go easy on them, give them life in JAIL for manslaughter or even negligent homicide.
JAIL the REAL culprits, the fascist SOBs that are running our country into the ground. JAIL Cheney and Bush, the murderous thugs.
Repeating your foolishness will not make your claims any more believable or relevant.
Many of us posting here have served in the U.S. military, although this is obviously not required in order to have an opinion on this, or any other topic.
You first acknowledged that you had never served in the U.S. military, then tried to claim that you had. One way or another, this appears to be an unmistakable lie. This also seems to demonstrate that you are a sreeching, sniveling, coward.
You claimed that you had the ability to identify me by tracing my IP address. Knowing that this was false, I challenged you to ID me right on this forum. You failed to do so, obviously because this was yet another lie.
You attempt to foment hatred against brown people with your absurd anti-Muslim nonsense. Your blood-thirsty hate-filled god might be pleased with your crusade against brown people, but will he/she/it also welcome a habbitual liar and a coward?
Sure those terrorists that kill civilians are guilty of murder. But you need to understand the source of terrorism -- whether in Iraq or in Ireland, it is the action of people who feel hate and outrage and so drawn into their cause that they see it as their only way to fight back.
You think they "hate us for our freedom" (total Neocon propaganda)? No! They hate us for occupying their country, for attempting to steal their oil, for Abu Ghrib, for the destruction of their citries, for building permanent military bases on their soil... and they know our history of supporting dictators in the region (like Saddam, like the overthrow of Mossadeq)to further our own "interests".
GET US OUT if IRAQ!!
In Vietnam, there was not bloodbath whey the US left. Instead the bloodbath (that we caused) finally ended - 55,000 US soldiers dead and two million Vietnamese.
Not this Marine.
During my final year in Vietnam - I was assigned a man who
Would always throw small Temper-Tantrums. Whenever -
He was told : To do something.
At first I thought : (F.N.G.)
After three weeks of, observing his behavior.
I took him down to see a medic - I knew
Who was now, working down at the -
3rd Field Evac Hospital - in Saigon.
I asked the medic to - just talk to him.
Then tell me - what he thought
Near two hours later, he came out and said :
" This man - Should not be in the Army.
He's mildly retarded"
After we got back, to the Company Area.
I went and talked to the - Operations Sargeant
Together - We went down and talked with the
company clerk.
I was able to take him of the field.
I had him permanently, assigned to the motor pool
in the base camp.
Throughout these years. I have often wondered.
How many of those guys - Were killed - because :
They couldn't - comprehend or fully appreciate
The - "Real" - Situation they were in.
This is what happens when - Mental scores are lowered.
This is what happens when - Recruiter's can't make quotas
Anyone who is below the : - "Average Intelligence" - Level
Is Mentally Impaired ! ! ! !
Lowering the Mental Standards : Does not make -
More intelligent people ! ! !
Lastdance
I have said that many in our home. WE HAVE NO BUSINESS OVER THERE. I have loved ones there as do every one. Bush family is to blame. Randy ,who else has done the same thing and walked. Figger that out..Bush will pardoned the whole lot.. I HATE THE ILLGAL WAR..He best stop lying and bring them where they ARE needed.
War IS Hell. In any large force, under constant stress and fear, there will always be some number who crack, panic, become numb to the death, make mistakes... for whatever reason the result is that there are always horror stories, because war IS horror.
How many civilians were killed when Bush ordered "Shock and Awe" for NO REASON. The war was based on deliberate LIES. So why isn't BUSH ON TRIAL for HIS war crimes?? Answer that one!
That does not excuse this soldier, who must be accountable for his action. But the ultimate cause and responsibility for ALL OF THIS HORROR resides with CHENEY AND BUSH. So please direct the bulk of your outrage where it belongs.
Posted by singinrick at 07:18 PM : Aug 02, 2007
That has nothing whatsoever to do with this case. It does not mitigate or even apply to this case in any manner. My opinion on Muslims, radical or otherwise, has no bearing on this case or how I feel about it. This soldier committed murder and if others anywhere else in the world do or do not commit murder doesn't change the fact that this one did and has no bearing on that fact.
Re: "JAIL the REAL culprits, the fascist SOBs that are running our country into the ground. JAIL Cheney and Bush, the murderous thugs."
I will second that. They clearly represent the greatest danger that we currently face, by far.
I feel like I'm Dorothy going to the Land of OZ ~
I'm with Cheney who needs a heart, Gonzales who needs some courage and Bush who needs a brain.
Re: "He's Failed Our Nation Again"
I would have to disagree with this. The Bush regime is in the midst of actively attacking the people of the U.S. and the world, for their own gain.
I don't think that their plans are a failure. I think that they have been very successful in the eyes of those whom they serve.
For example, the "surge" is designed to prolong the illegal war against Iraq, in my opinion. It seems to be working just fine.
Re: "Isn't this starting to look a lot like Saigon before we left ??"
I am not that familiar with the conditions surrounding that period, but there do seem to be similarities.
Not to worry though. Cheney says that we are turning the corner.
If they can kill us, we can kill them
Qaeda warns of attacks 'worse than 9/11'
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070530102648.wuwa6k96&show_article=1
Hizbullah Deputy Sec-Gen Sheikh Naim Qassem: We Have Jurisprudent Permission to Carry Out 'Martyrdom' Operations, Fire Missiles on Israeli Civilians From Ayatollah Khomeini
http://memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD154907
Switching Sides: Inside The Enemy Camp
But then in 2000, well before his arrest, something happened which would make Abas question everything he believed in: a fatwa, a religious edict, was issued by Osama bin Laden.
"It should be understood that killing Americans and Jews anywhere found are the highest act of worship and the highest form of good deeds in the eyes of Allah," Simon quotes bin Laden.
Abas and his fellow commanders were ordered to read the fatwa to their men and make sure they carried it out. The others obeyed, but Abas refused. It was his moment of truth. He firmly believed that jihad was to be fought only on the battlefield in defense of Islam; he had always been taught that the killing of civilians had nothing to do with holy war and that it was forbidden.
The fatwa justified killing non-Muslim civilians everywhere.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/04/60minutes/main2761108.shtml?source=RSSattr=60Minutes_2761108
American Al Qaeda Member Threatens Attack
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/29/terror/main2865282.shtml
Some of these books detail horrendous crimes against Iraqi civilians - including the murder of children as young as 10, the murder of Iraqi adults (men and women), the beating of civilians (men, women and children), in many cases for no other reasons except they were Iraqis, looting, stealing money and jewelery from Iraqis as well as causing unnecessary destruction while conducting house searches - house searches that revealed nothing.
At one point, soldiers played soccer with the decapitated heads of Iraqis.
These crimes against Iraqis began occurring shortly after the invasion of Iraq - prior to any resistance that formed to fight back against the American "occupiers".
These are crimes that we don't want to hear about - that we don't think could be committed by decent Americans - but they did happen, and they continue to happen.
Bush through his lies and deception has turned good, honest Americans into murderers, rapists, thieves and criminals.
I'm not too sure about you, but if someone - anyone - invaded my country and raided my house, abused my family, destroyed my furniture and desecrated my belongings, or killed my family members, I wouldn't be too happy - and I would fight back.
Bush has done enough damage in Iraq.
"I do not condone the actions of this Marine one bit as it is totally wrong and inhumane, but I'd sure like to know what you think of the radical Islamic jihadists who are blowing people up every day should be sentenced to."
Sounds to me like you condone the murder of innocent Iraqis, regardless of what you have said above.
It doesn't matter what anyone thinks of "radical Islamic jihadist" murderers.
Answer this:
Do you support the murder of innocent Iraqis by Americans in uniform.
Is this you?
http://profielen1.****.nl/show.php?nick=lars008
Anyway, I think that you have made a wise shift of tactics, by delaring jihad against the jihadists that wage jihad against your jihad.
Good thinking.
"For all you whiners who are blaming Bush for what this Marine did.(Just like you blame Bush for everything that happens on this earth!)
Every man is responsible for his own actions, and every man also has a choice to join the military and serve his country as well."
Have you joined the military yet?
I know you keep claiming that you have, but then, you also claimed that your wife was in the military and that she was pregnant.
Were you lying then?
"I do not condone the actions of this Marine one bit as it is totally wrong and inhumane, but I'd sure like to know what you think of the radical Islamic jihadists who are blowing people up every day should be sentenced to."
I wonder if singinrick appreciates the irony of his comment.
I'm not too sure about singinrick, but if someone - anyone - invaded my country and raided my house, abused my family, destroyed my furniture and desecrated my belongings, or killed my family members, I wouldn't be too happy - and I would fight back.
I wonder if he feels that the French Resistance during World War 2 should all have been executed?
USA's PLEDGE 2 THE WORLD GIVEN BY JFK!!
"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty." - John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1961
"Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." - John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1961
One ought never to turn one's back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger by half. Winston Churchill
"The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing." Albert Einstein
Edmund Burke: All that is necessary for evil to succeed is that good men do nothing.
non muslims of the world unite... fight against the tyranny of the fascist nazi terrorslam imperialist empire of the darkside...
Our Prophet commanded us to fight the kaafirs when we are able and to attack them in their homelands and to give them three choices before we enter their lands: either they become Muslim and be like us, sharing our rights and duties; or they pay the jizyah (poll tax) and feel themselves subdued; or they fight, in which case their wealth, women, children and homes become permissible as booty for the Muslims.
http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=13759&ln=eng&txt=before%20islam%20arabia%20pagan
In 1786, Thomas Jefferson, then U.S. ambassador to France, and John Adams, then American Ambassador to Britain, met in London with Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the Dey%u2019s ambassador to Britain, in an attempt to negotiate a peace treaty based on Congress%u2019 vote of funding. To Congress, these two future presidents later reported the reasons for the Muslims%u2019 hostility towards America, a nation with which they had no previous contacts.
%u2026that it was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Musselman (Muslim) who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise.
Sound familiar?
Thomas Jefferson and James Madison defeated the fascist nazi muslims 200 years ago
And again 100 years ago with Theodore Roosevelt
Tunisia in 1881 by France and Libya in 1911 by Italy. By then most of the Islamic world was under Christian domination. With the Ottoman Empire defeated in WW1, secularist Turkish rebels in 1923 overthrew the last Islamic Caliphate,
http://www.hawaiireporter.com/story.aspx?6bdec278-6a71-4436-bc4d-29d1c54b0ad7
"I do not condone the actions of this Marine one bit as it is totally wrong and inhumane, but I'd sure like to know what you think of the radical Islamic jihadists who are blowing people up every day should be sentenced to."
I agree with the first part of the above but feel that once we had gotten rid of Saddem and found out that there were no WMD, we should have withdrawn. We would have lost face but all of the deaths, destruction, misery, etc that followed would have been avoided. Some strong SOB would have succeeded Saddam and Iraq would then have had peace and stability.
There would still be a war on terror but we would have fought it in a different way.
WHY IS IT NOT ONE MUSLIM COUNTRY GRANTS EQUAL RIGHTS TO NON MUSLIMS???
FASCIST NAZI TERRORISLAM SAYS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATES ISLAM LAW...
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
For example, in 1981, the Iranian representative to the United Nations, Said Rajaie-Khorassani, articulated the position of his country regarding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by saying that the UDHR was "a secular understanding of the Judeo-Christian tradition", which could not be implemented by Muslims without trespassing the Islamic law.
http://www.un.org/terrorism/
http://www.un.org/terrorism/strategy-counter-terrorism.html
http://www.un.org/
But the accepted assumption in India is that most of India's Muslims were converted to Islam through the sword. Meaning the Indians were given an option between death or adopting Islam. The third option was getting examined in Islam religion along with heavy taxes- Jeziya (poll tax) and Kharaj (property tax).
http://adaniel.tripod.com/Islam.htm
this is what fascist nazi islam calls peace....
are you ready to live under islam rule as a non muslim???
apartheid fascist nazi islamic style
Rights of Non-Muslims in an Islamic State
http://www.sullivan-county.com/id3/islamic_state.htm
islam practices slavery on non muslims
islam practices apartheid on non muslims
islam practices rape on non muslims
islam practices rape on babies and animals
islam practices genocide on non muslims
all are violations of international law and are crimes against humanity
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/22/world/main2505445.shtml
Imam Khomeini - Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution
http://www.homa.org/Details.asp?ContentID=2137352826&TOCID=2083225445
Malaysia women 'suffer apartheid'
The daughter of Malaysia's former prime minister has launched a scathing attack on the roles and status of Muslim women in the country.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4784784.stm
A matter of tolerance
http://musingwithmarinamahathir.blogspot.com/2006/12/matter-of-tolerance.html
Marina Mahathir
http://musingwithmarinamahathir.blogspot.com/
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=slavery+islam&btnG=Search
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4795808.stm
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=apartheid islam
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=rape islam
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=rape islam babies&btnG=Search
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=genocide islam&btnG=Search
1. We have no problem with them dying like flies while promote our idea of a government and make them pay for it.
2. When an Iraqi is killed, the top "payment" for the family is 500.00 and that, only if proven that an American killed the person and that he/she was not an insurgent or sympathizer to them
3. When we plot to kill them, we can get time served, or 15 years at the most--because that is how much we DON't value their lives
4. We keep saying we would rather fight our war of terror there (so they can do the dying and crying) instead of fighting our war on our own turf
5. We have the gall to invade, bomb, occupy and torture, then proclaim ourselves, saviour, hero and good guys--and expect them to like and help us with our war. Even Hitler did not pretend that the people he invaded should be grateful and that he was anything other than a conqueror.
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by speakinup
August 3, 2007 10:09 PM EDT
- "Even Hitler did not pretend that the people he invaded should be grateful and that he was anything other than a conqueror." toldyouso21
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Reply to this comment
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See all 36 CommentsHitler ? Come on, according to Ahmadinejad, Hitler didn't even kill the Jews. It was all a fake. Yeah Man, according to him, the Hollocaust didn't happen. So, if you are going to idolize OBL and try to fight his war for him - get with the rest of the facts.
And FeelFree1 swears it's all a fake - that the US and British governments are making this all up. Hey, he thinks the twin towers didn't happen, or something like that. Get all the facts, man.
Otherwise, prove yourself an idiot somewhere else. Get with the Fatwa, Man.