Hearing set for lieutenant colonel charged in Haditha case [first Article 32 in two weeks!]

North County Times ^ | March 6, 2007 | Mark Walker

[RedRover]

CAMP PENDLETON -- A hearing to help determine whether the highest ranking Marine charged in the case of 24 civilian deaths in Haditha, Iraq, in 2005 is set to get under way in two weeks.

The Article 32 hearing for Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani will feature as many as 20 witnesses called in his defense, according to one of two civilian attorneys from a Michigan faith-based organization hired to help defend him.

"This is one of the rare times where we have the luxury of defending an innocent man," said Brian Rooney. "The facts are in our favor."

Rooney and Robert Muise from the Thomas Moore Law Center in Ann Arbor, a nonprofit group that works on anti-abortion causes and defends Christians accused of wrongdoing, will represent the 42-year-old Chessani along with appointed military attorneys Lt. Col. Jon Shelburne and Capt. Jeffery King.

Shelburne is a Marine reservist who teaches law at Robert Williams University in Rhode Island and King is a defense attorney stationed at Camp Pendleton.

Rooney said the defense intends to take full advantage of the hearing slated to start on March 21.

The witnesses will show that the former battalion commander charged with violation of a lawful order and two counts of dereliction of duty for the way he handled the initial investigation did nothing wrong, Rooney said.

An Article 32 hearing is comparable to a probable cause hearing in civilian court where prosecutors work to establish that sufficient evidence exists to order and an accused to trial.

"Lt. Col. Chessani was forthright with the investigators and everything he did was proper," Rooney said during a telephone interview Tuesday morning. "We believe that we will be able to show that what Lt. Col. Chessani did that day was sufficient for the situation that occurred."

Chessani was one of eight Camp Pendleton Marines from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment charged on Dec. 21 with offenses arising out of the two dozen civilian deaths that occurred following a roadside bomb explosion in Haditha on Nov. 19, 2005.

Chessani was relieved from his post as battalion commander when the unit returned to Camp Pendleton in April. He remains on active duty at the base and faces up to three years confinement and dismissal from the service if convicted.

Rooney, a former Marine attorney who served with Chessani in the battle for the city of Fallujah in November 2004, said his client is a committed Christian who has faith that the military justice system will exonerate him.

"He is very professional and helpful in his own defense and is not angry at the Marine Corps and not frantic about what is happening," Rooney said.

But as a father of five who has been in the Marine Corps for 19 years, Chessani is concerned about the potential long-term consequences, Rooney said.

"He's worried about how this could affect his retirement and his family," the attorney said. "He has a lot at stake besides having been relieved of command."

Chessani was on his third assignment to Iraq when the Haditha killings took place.

An experienced infantry officer whose name was not immediately available has been assigned to preside over the hearing, Rooney said.

"We believe he will be able to see that what Lt. Col. Chessani did was sufficient for the situation," the attorney said. "He gave reports about what happened after visiting the scene and relying on what subordinates told him."

The hearing for Chessani, a native of Colorado, will be the first for any of the men charged in the Haditha incident.

Three other officers, Capts. Lucas McConnell and Randy Stone and 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson, also are charged with dereliction of duty for allegedly failing to properly investigate and report the incident.

Four enlisted men are charged with the actual killings. They are Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz and Lance Cpls. Justin Sharratt and Stephen Tatum.

Attorneys for all the accused maintain their clients are innocent and that their actions were the direct response of the bombing that killed a lance corporal and injured another Marine.

Rooney said the bombing and subsequent small arms fire from one or more of the four houses the Marines eventually assaulted and where most of the civilians died was one of several insurgent attacks in Haditha that day.

"This was a complex attack that occurred with the terrorists using civilians as cover to launch their assault and then fade away," Rooney said.

Chessani's background includes having served in the first Iraqi war in 1991. He later attended the Command and Staff College in Quantico, Va., where he earned a master's degree in military studies.

He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 2004 and assigned to the post of operations officer for the 1st Marines in Iraq.

His first combat command came in May 2005, when he took over the base's 3rd Battalion.

Chessani majored in meteorology at the University of Northern Colorado and received his Marine Corps commission in 1988.

During the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989, he captured several of former President Manuel Noriega's top officers.

Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.

[RedRover]

This Article 32 will set the tone for the seven that will follow in the spring and early summer.

Join the Haditha Marine Ping List to hear the latest, as it happens.

[RedRover]

Related thread from earlier today: Case against Marine blamed on Murtha politics [Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani / Haditha]

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Ping!

[jude24]

Rooney and Robert Muise from the Thomas Moore Law Center in Ann Arbor, a nonprofit group that works on anti-abortion causes and defends Christians accused of wrongdoing, will represent the 42-year-old Chessani along with appointed military attorneys Lt. Col. Jon Shelburne and Capt. Jeffery King.

That's not a good thing. They would not be on my list if I needed a lawyer. Their history in the Dover Intelligent Design case showed me that they are afflicted with ideological blindness.

[PhilDragoo]

Yes and these are "civilians" because. . .they weren't in uniform, because the enemy said they were civilians, because the peace Democrats and fifth-column media want power and prefer America be defeated.

If the president wonders where his popularity went he might examine why he has hamstrung our fighters with Alice In Wonderland ROEs and allows them to be targets in the current Salem abomination.

Keeping score, we have these Marines, the Border Patrol agents and Libby sacrificed to the enemy while Sandy Berger, al-Sadr, William Jefferson et al are free to golf with O.J.

[lilycicero]

Mail RR.

[RedRover]

Thomas More Law Center, FYI, ping.

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Asked and answered, O Queen of My Heart.

[pissant]

I hope his lawyers pound these bastard prosecuters in the teeth.

[lilycicero]

I hope your wife isn't a lurker. She might clothes-line you when you get home for saying such sweet nothings too all your FRushes. :)

[RedRover]

Sounds like a heck of a team. Pretty incredible that Rooney was with Chessani in Fallujah in '04.

[RedRover]

Thomas More Law Center, FYI, ping.

[jude24]

The problem is that the Thomas More Law Center are True Believers. True Believers are dangerous as lawyers, because they can be blind to the weaknesses in their case.

If I were indicted on a serious crime, I would not solicit an attorney from the Thomas More Law Center, or any other political organization. Instead, I'd ask the lawyers I know to recommend who they would ask to defend them.

[Girlene]

It seems like a natural fit to me. No. 1 it's pro bono, No. 2 one of the lawyers served with Lt. Col. Chessani in the battle for Fallujah.

If you read the related article in post 2, they lay out their reasoning for taking this case.

....""The outcome of this case is vital to the security of our nation and to the military personnel we place in harm's way," Thompson said. "As tragic as these civilian deaths are, it's essential that we not shackle our combat commanders' ability to make decisions by placing them in fear of criminal prosecution every time there are civilian casualties as a result of combat action."....

They blast not only Times and the terrorists, but really take on Murtha.

And further comment on their reasoning.....

...""Terrorists routinely use mosques, schools, hospitals, and civilian homes from which to launch attacks and hide," said Rooney. "We have always taught Marines to be aggressive and encouraged this aggression in order to help them survive and accomplish their mission."

"Through our defense of Lt. Col. Chessani, Marines on the ground will be assured that their valiant combat actions will not be turned into political fodder and talking points for politicians seeking headlines," said Muise."....

That sounds like some good broadbased reasoning/idealogy to defend the Lt. Col. (at least to me).

[jude24]

That sounds like some good broadbased reasoning/idealogy to defend the Lt. Col. (at least to me).

That's exactly the problem. Ideology rarely plays well in the courtroom - especially not in the military courtroom. If your play is jury nullification, you will not get it in a military tribunal.

The better approach would be to find a retired JAG - someone who left for better pastures (e.g. an in-house counsel gig), and hire him to represent you. That way, you get someone who knows military law inside and out, but isn't blinded to the realities of your case by ideology.

Your milage may vary, of course. This is the tack I'd take.

[RedRover]

Frankly, jude, I was pushing David Sheldon (Lt. Phan's attorney in the Hamdania-related case) to take the lieutenant colonel's case. We will see.

I was a little surprised that the prosecution is starting with the highest rank. In the Hamdania and Iron Triangles, the lowest rank went first. Do you know if there's a standard?

[jude24]

I was pushing David Sheldon (Lt. Phan's attorney in the Hamdania-related case) to take the lieutenant colonel's case.

He's probably got his hands full.

In the Hamdania and Iron Triangles, the lowest rank went first. Do you know if there's a standard?

Not that I am aware of. But, I know only enough to be dangerous....

[RedRover]

But, I know only enough to be dangerous....

Ditto! ;)

[Girlene]

Do you think there are many Marines who don't realize how this case has affected the ROE's currently being used in Iraq? Do you think there are many Marines who respect Murtha and don't realize his political impact on having these charges filed? And I don't mean just active duty types; even those stationed back at Camp Pendleton get the stories.

The actual facts relevant to the case are the top layer of defense, but these "ideologies" form the background that a panel of peers will be using in their judgement.

What should a defense lawyer base the case on?

[jude24]

The actual facts relevant to the case are the top layer of defense, but these "ideologies" form the background that a panel of peers will be using in their judgement.

Appealing to those ideologies is grounds for an instant mistrial. The message a verdict may send is not an appropriate consideration.