Haditha Charges Against Marine Dropped

(AP)  The Marine Corps on Friday dropped charges and gave full immunity to a serviceman who was accused of involuntary manslaughter in a squad's killing of 24 Iraqis in Haditha in 2005.

The case against Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum, 26, of Edmond, Okla., was dropped as jury selection was about to begin for his court-martial.

The government has been seeking Tatum's testimony against the squad leader, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich of Meriden, Conn.

In February, Tatum received an order to testify against Wuterich and an unrequested immunity order that said anything to which he testified would not be used against him in his court-martial. On Friday, a new immunity order was issued along with the dismissal of charges.

In addition to two counts of involuntary manslaughter, Tatum had been charged with reckless endangerment and aggravated assault.

Tatum's attorney, Jack Zimmerman, said there was no agreement with the government before the dismissal.

"Absolutely, there is no deal," he said.

Zimmerman said Tatum would testify if called as a witness in future trials but that he would testify as a neutral witness, not a government witness.

Camp Pendleton spokesman Lt. Col. Sean Gibson said the dismissal was signed by Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland.

The case stemmed from a squad's assault in response to a roadside bombing of a convoy that killed one Marine and wounded two others.

The government says Wuterich and another Marine shot five men at the scene and the squad leader then ordered his men to clear homes with grenades and gunfire, killing unarmed civilians.

Wuterich faces nine counts of voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and obstruction of justice. There is no date set for Wuterich's court-martial.

Wuterich's civilian defense attorney, Neal Puckett, contended that the Tatum dismissal showed the government has a poor case against his client.

"I think it's a further demonstration of how weak the government's case has become. Of the four Marines who fired weapons that day only one still faces charges," Puckett said.

Four enlisted Marines were initially charged with murder and four officers were charged with failing to investigate the deaths. Over time the case has shrunk, including removal of all murder charges.

Tatum was the third enlisted Marine to have all charged dismissed. Only two officers remain charged.

The highest-ranking defendant is Lt. Col. Jeffrey R. Chessani of Rangley, Colo., commander of the Camp Pendleton-based 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment at the time of the Nov. 19, 2005, Haditha killings.

Chessani, accused of dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order, has said he didn't order a formal investigation because he believed the deaths resulted from lawful combat.

[ranger1948]

ubrew12
Thanks for the clarification. However with the results of the case now it looks like those witnesses must have lacked credibility.

[ubrew12]

ranger1948 said: "ubrew12, I dont understand your last comment about that is why murder works."
You kill the witnesses, then you get to define them however you want. One way of looking at it is: the only mistake those soldiers made that day was letting witnesses live. Cuz those witnesses have been pretty universal in condemning what they saw.

Of course, they were Iraqi...

[ranger1948]

gce65
Calley was a scapegoat at Mi Lai. Were the killings unjust ? I do not know i wasn''t there. I know it was a typical story where our troopswould go in and help a village then have them turn on our troops because they were actually communists. What would you have done in Calleys place ? He had seen his men continuously killed by people they had helped. They searched the village and found caches of hidden weapons for the VC. Maybe he lost it and had them killed. Maybe he was following orders like he testified he was. Maybe he figured that if he made an example out of these traitors that it would do some good in the war effort. I wouldn''t try to second guess any man in a combat situation. Noone knows for sure except him and anyone else that was there that day.

[ranger1948]

kesac4650
I always wonder why when someone makes a comment they have to be sarcastic or beligerant. I fought for the right of everyone to have an opinion and to voice it, even you. I do not care for any of the three choices we have to choose from, just like in the last election. That is why i had my daughter to talk to the soldiers in her unit to see who they wanted to be their new Commander in Chief. I have always been supportive of our troops even though i an against th war in Iraq. I have also always been loyal to my country. So remember you can voice your opinion because of the soldiers we have today and the ones including me from the past.

[ranger1948]

ubrew12
I don''t understand your last comment about that is why murder works.

[ubrew12]

ranger1948 said: "who says those women were innocent."
No one. That''s why murder works.

[gce65]

CBS: Why aren''t you calling the events in Haditha what they really are, a MASSACRE?

Will Bush/Cheney frown upon you and complain to your corporate board members? Maybe restrict your access to "unnamed administration sources?" You COWARDS!

What did you report 40 years ago in Viet Nam, that a few unlawful killings took place in Mi Lai?

[cdfoxtrot]

"Haditha Charges Against Marine Dropped". Of course they have. The tactic is as follows: (1) when bad news gets out about criminal behavior by US soldiers, initiate a B.S. study that takes months/years, long enough so that people loose interest; (2) after it''s properly determined that the media have lost interest, drop all charges. Voila. End of problem.

[ranger1948]

I just received an email from my daughter in Iraq. I was totally undecided who to vote for so asked her to talk with the soldiers in her unit and see who they want to win. She said they all wanted Hillary as they feel she is the one who will pull them out of Iraq. Now my vote is for Hillary, right or wrong. I feel we owe it to the troops to support what they want.

[ranger1948]

ubrew12
The issue here is the charges were dropped because the Marine Corps did not feel they could get a conviction. Therefore under our laws this man is presumed innocent. And who says those women were innocent. The terrorists use women to blow themselves up and fight against our American troops all the time.