MILITARY: Father's Day special for Hamdania Marine (SGT Hutchins)

MILITARY: Father's Day special for Hamdania Marine Sgt. Larry Hutchins spends first Father's Day with 5-year-old daughter

Larry Hutchins III spent Sunday like many fathers, relaxing and surrounded by members of his family.

But for the Camp Pendleton Marine at the center of a 2006 slaying of an Iraqi civilian, it was a Father's Day unlike any he has known. It was his first with his 5-year-old daughter, Kylie.

"It's awesome," Hutchins said as he sat with his right arm tightly wrapped around his only child. "It's unbelievable."

Hutchins has been behind bars for most of his daughter's life, convicted by a military jury of murder and related charges in the 2006 kidnapping and slaying of Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Anbar village of Hamdania.

The squad leader from the base's 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment is one of seven Marines and a Navy medical corpsman found guilty in the incident that occurred at the height of the Iraq war. He was the only one sent to prison.

Last month, his 11-year sentence was thrown out when a military appeals court ruled one of his attorneys was improperly dismissed shortly before trial.

While the government appeals that ruling, Hutchins has been freed and restored to the rank of sergeant stripped from him upon conviction.

On Sunday, he talked about what his first few days of freedom have been like and his hopes.

"I really can't look back," the 26-year-old Massachusetts native said. "I absolutely have a lot of things to work out, but I am going to put my best foot forward. I just want to be able to move on, be with my daughter and be the best family man I can be."

This was written 2 years ago. Since then, each Marine has gone back to their original testimony of what happened on that day: That Lt

Phan issued orders they were to apprehend a known terrorist who was recently seen planting IED’s that killed several Marines within 2

days of this incident, and kill him:

HAMDANIA: OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS TELL A DIFFERENT STORY WHEN COMPARED TO THE MEDIA ACCOUNTS. WHY?

(A) WHAT WERE THE CIRCUMSTANCES LEADING UP TO THE PATROL THAT NIGHT? WERE THEY COMMON EVENTS OR WAS THIS A SPECIAL PATROL TO SEARCH OUT

A SPECIFIC PERSON AS THE OFFICIAL CHARGES CLAIMED?

The government’s case was that the patrol lead by Sgt Hutchin’s, Plymouth, Massachusetts, was after a specific insurgent named Saleh

Gowad, and when he was not found at the location of his house, a random house was chosen and an innocent man was taken and killed. Make

sure that you note the following that Sgt Hutchins was NOT at the house when Awad was taken; yet, Sgt Hutchins is the only one convicted

of murder and is the only one who is continuing to do jail time.

The following news articles show the accusation brought against these Marines, the Pendleton 8:

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/11/16/news/top_stories/1_01_1711_15_06.txt

“One of those suspected insurgents was a man named Saleh Gowad, an Iraqi the squad had arrested at least three times during a 45-day

period, Jodka said. It was Gowad that the platoon was originally looking for, Jodka and other members of the squad have testified.”

The Iraqi man, Saleh Gowad, was a known terrorist suspect who lived in the same house with his family and siblings Amad, Tareq, Hambed,

Hakem and Ismael. According to the Census report of Kilo Company, the entire family, (sons and Father) were believed to be involved in

the insurgency against the international forces participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was known to work at a gas station and made

deliveries from the location of the gas station, sometimes being gone for as many as 6 days.

The census reports clearly name other individuals, also, who were believed to be involved with kidnapping rings, IED creation and

deployment, the murder of Iraqi civilians, the operation of terror cells, small arms attacks on Marine Corps forces, and which

businesses were being used as fronts to create IED?s and VBIEDS.

On April 7, 2006, the family of Gowad was seen at a senior leadership meeting, with Saleh Gowad present among other insurgent leaders

who were named in the report. Saleh Gowad, or a man identifying himself as Saleh Gowad, was spotted and questioned by Marines of Kilo

Company, 3rd squad, as reported on April 9, 2006. The man reported to be Gowad appeared to look different than the previous descriptions

given of this man of interest, or HIGH VALUE INTEREST person (HVI)

In a report dated April 12, 2006, an unnamed brother of Saleh Gowad was seen in a market where an IED had gone off on April 11, 2006,

and is believed to have acted as a lookout for the insurgents who exploded the IED and to observe the tactics used by the Marines as a

form of intelligence gathering.

So the question is, since the government claims it was a mission to specifically grab Saleh Gowad, why would the squad go after Gowad

when others of higher importance and clear connections to kidnapping rings, murder, other IED?s and small arms fire attacks against

Marines are known to Marine Corps intelligence?

With all the names and tribal connections listed in the census reports, to include the names of Gowad?s brothers and father as being

possible insurgents, why would Sgt Hutchin?s squad choose to leave the home of Saleh Gowad with NO ONE else from the house, knowing that

the entire family was suspect, to just snatch someone from a house at random?

Remember, the government?s story is that Sgt Hutchin?s squad was on a self created mission, orchestrated by Sgt Hutchins, to capture or

kill the Iraqi man, Saleh Gowad. When this failed with Saleh Gowad not at his house, they went to another random location and snatched

Hashim Ibrihim Awad from his bed and killed him in a fabricated IED hole and a planted a rifle and shovel to hide the murder. This was

all supposed to have been done for the purpose of extracting revenge for previous attacks against Marine forces in the area.

As the media has reported this ?act of revenge?, here are two examples:

?Encinitas Marine pleads guilty in Hamdania killing

Thursday, October 26, 2006—

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/10/26/news/top_stories/1_01_510_25_06.txt

Jodka testified that he did not know that Awad was not their intended target, a suspected Iraqi insurgent named Saleh Gowad, but was

actually Awad. When the squad could not find Gowad at his home, members went to another house and seized Awad. “I couldn’t see the man

in the hole at the time we were firing, sir,” Jodka said. “I only saw him stand up and run down the road to the north.”

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2006-10-06-iraq-marines_x.htm

?Prosecutors have said the servicemen killed Awad out of frustration and then planted the assault rifle and shovel by the body to make

it look as if he had been caught digging a hole for a roadside bomb. Bacos testified that the squad entered Hamdania on April 26 while

searching for a known insurgent who had been captured three times, then released. Squad leader Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins was “just mad that

we kept letting him go and he was a known terrorist,” Bacos said. The group approached a house where the insurgent was believed to be

hiding, but when someone inside woke up, the Marines instead went to another home and grabbed Awad, a former policeman, according to the

testimony. Bacos said the squad had intended to get someone else if they did not capture the insurgent, then stage a firefight to make

it appear they had found an Iraqi planting a roadside bomb.?

If the decision was to grab Saleh Gowad from his home, then why go to another home to find a random victim just to make a point? Knowing

that ALL the male members of the Gowad family were considered a part of the Iraqi insurgency, any male member of the family who was at

home would have been a ?suitable? person to intentionally murder to make the revenge point.

If the members of the squad were so bold as to grab someone at another random location, why would the act of waking someone up at the

original target house cause them to abandon their mission?

(B) THE APPREHENSION AND THE SCENE OF THE KILLING OF ?HASHIM AWAD?

This is from the autopsy report of the Hamdania incident, which was NOT allowed into evidence in this murder trial, the pathology

report, and the Census Reports performed by Kilo Company.

And, YES, that’s correct, the autopsy report was not allowed into trial!

In the Census reports, each Squad Leader gives a detail of who they encountered as personnel in the Iraqi cities and villages as needed.

This information is then used as intelligence, both in assessing the nature of the community and its needs, but also in war intelligence

against Iraqi insurgents. These reports are also used to provide detail in how suspected insurgents are approached and a short

description of actions taken against those who show hostile intent.

In these reports, whenever a squad approaches a house, one of the main thrusts described in entering the house is to secure the area

surrounding the house itself and especially, THE ROOF of the house. Each time an entry is made, it is always assumed, and rightly so,

that there may be persons of hostile intent inside who would fire upon the Marines. Also, one well known Military axiom is to control

the ?high ground? of a situation, for it allows observation of the surrounding area and allows for greater command and control of all

units in place and those who may be needed for support.

In these Census Reports, many times there is a clear mention of the Marines who entered these houses did so in accordance with rules of

war fighting that meant: they also secured the high ground: the roof!

From one Census report, dated March 28, 2006, an Iraqi house was entered at night time, and reads the following:

?AS WE CAME UP TO THE HOUSE I SET IN MY INT. CORDON AND THEN PUSHED INTO THE HOUSE. AS WE CAME UP TO THE HOUSE WE WOKE UP THE FAMILY AND

BEGAN TO GET THE FAMILY UP AND INTO ONE ROOM THE MAIN ROOM. ONCE THE HOUSE WAS CLEAR WE SENT FOR THE INT. CORDON AND SET ROOF TOP

SECURITY AND BEGAN TO SEARCH THE HOUSE. WE CAME UP ON 4 MEN AND NUMEROUS WOMEN AND CHILDREN. WE BEGAN TO ASK QUESTIONS.?

This is critical, for the testimony of the Awad family is:

1.) That when Sgt Hutchin?s squad allegedly grabbed Hashim Awad from his house, there is no testimony from the family that any sort of

combat entry involving the establishment of a security perimeter. This would have been suicide for the Marines of Sgt Hutchin?s squad to

not perform. Their actions would be no less surprising as any night time search done previously or since and therefore would be no less

dangerous than any combat entry.

2.) To therefore believe the claim that their actions during a ?legal and approved? entry into a house to grab a suspected insurgent

would necessitate defensive maneuvers to include a defensive perimeter around the house and then a defensive emplacement upon the roof

of the house to prevent any actions of any insurgents who may be unseen; and yet when going to a house at random to snatch someone to

murder them after failing to find the previous unfound terrorists can somehow allow these Marines to:

a.) Drop their guard and not establish a security which would include the securing of the roof top where the family testified they were

sleeping atop?

b.) Not secure the perimeter of the house they were surrounding?

c.) Perform all of this at 0300 in the morning after waking up a neighbor and direct family member who lived less than 100 feet away who

could easily either make a phone call to an insurgent friendly individual who lived nearby to engage these Marines with hostile fire

either immediately or shortly after their actions or openly monitor the actions of these Marines who allegedly took another Iraqi man?s

shovel and AK-47 from a previous house they supposedly barged into at 0200 that same morning?

What is known, from the documents we have received, is that Kilo Company had established a pattern of setting up IED ambushes by

visually making themselves seen in a common rural area for a time, show the populace a repeatable pattern of travel, and then egress the

area in an open manner to allow the local insurgents an opportunity to attempt to set up an IED. By showing a false pattern of movement,

Kilo Company would then return to the area under the cover of night using night vision equipment and monitor the area they were just

located at in hopes of catching an insurgent planting an explosive device.

This pattern of patrolling was proven effective, and on the night in question, Sgt Hutchin?s patrol proved it effective again by

catching the man identified as ?Hashim Awad? in the act of digging a hole for what was believed to be an IED, at the hour of 0200, an

act that is rightly seen as hostile.

(C)WHO SHOT WHO: THE KILLING OF THE MAN IDENTIFIED AS AWAD

The story of the actual death of a supposed Iraqi man identified as Hashim Ibrihim Awad, has very differing accounts from both the

Marines ‘witnesses’ and the supposed Iraqi ‘witnesses’. Among the conflicting stories are the number of people who supposedly entered

the house to remove and apprehend the supposed Iraqi man, Hashim Ibrihim Awad, and just how the body was identified.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/04/AR2006060400797.html

( Please see original article at the link) ( This article discusses the differences between the Marine?s accounts of the action vs the

family and government) ?Iraqis Accuse Marines in April Killing Of Civilian - Disabled Man’s Family Disputes Troops’ Story - By Ellen

Knickmeyer-Washington Post Foreign Service Monday, June 5, 2006; A01- - Baghdad, June 4 - All parties to the case of Hashim Ibrahim Awad

al-Zobaie agree that he was shot dead by Marines of the 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment on April 26 in the small central Iraqi village of

Hamdaniyah. But there are differing accounts of his death, and they are at the heart of another investigation into the conduct of

American forces in Iraq. - - The slaying of Hashim, known in the village as Hashim the Lame because he had a metal bar surgically

inserted into one leg several years ago, is the smaller and less prominent of two incidents being investigated over allegations of

wrongful death and possible coverups.- - Members of Hashim’s family interviewed by a Washington Post special correspondent on Saturday

said the disabled man’s last hours began about 2 a.m. on April 26, when members of a U.S. Marine foot patrol banged at the door of his

one-story, walled compound. The Marines grabbed Hashim by the front of his cotton robe as soon as he came to the door, pulling him from

the house, said one of his sons, Nasir, 26, an arts student in Baghdad. “Less than an hour later, we heard shooting,” Nasir said. The

family was too afraid of the U.S. forces to immediately investigate, Nasir said.?

(Note also here in this story, if Awad truly lived in a walled compound, then the security concerns would have been greater, and the

need for control of the area against all unknown forces in the area would be expanded. To enter any residence where there is a walled

defense, especially after waking up the neighborhood by banging on the door and NOT securing the perimeter and rooftop as normal

procedure was, is insanity.)

Concerning the apprehension of the deceased, Iraqi sources quoted in the official autopsy report say the following: A man identified as

Nassar Hashim Ibrihim Al Awad, the son of Hashim Ibrihim Awad, claims to have been sleeping on the roof of his father’s house when at

0200 he heard loud banging on the front door. His father, Hashim, was sleeping downstairs. He claims his father answered the door to the

Marines outside, which Nassar numbered at about 8 Marines.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/07/11/news/top_stories/1_03_107_10_07.txt

“When Gowad wasn’t home, the squad decided to go to the home closest to his where they dragged the sleeping Awad from his bed, Jackson

said. They marched him out about 1,000 yards, bound his hands and feet, gagged him, then shot him, according to Jackson and Bacos, who

also testified Tuesday. They didn’t know who Awad was until told by investigators, they said.”

Note that the Iraqi man identified as Awad’s son said 8 men were at the door, which his father answered due to the knocking by the

Marines, but the Marines themselves say that only 4 of them approached the house and that Awad was forcibly removed from his bed. The

Marines made these statements as a part of their plea bargains.

Cpl Trent Thomas told the story this way:

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/01/19/news/top_stories/1_00_030_17_07.txt

“Thomas testified that Awad, the 52-year-old father of 11, became the focus of the squad after their original target, who lived in the

home next door to Awad’s, could not be found. Awad was killed in the early morning hours after being seized from his bed by a “snatch

team” that included Thomas, marched to a hole created by an earlier roadside bombing and shot multiple times.”

These differing accounts beg the question: Why would the family members lie if their father was murdered? If he was dragged from the

door after answering the knocks, why change the story? Would it matter if he was dragged from the door or from his bed? In fact, isn’t

it a much crueler thing to break into a house and drag someone from their own secure bed and outside the house kill them? If there is to

be a falsehood from the family concerning a murdered family member, would that lie not represent something more extreme?

Surely, to drag someone out of their house from their bed is worse, but the family does not say that, they plainly state in the official

report that he answered the door and was taken away.

So, why would the Marines all say he was taken from his bedside? Why is there no difference of opinion between the Marines who pled

guilty and got plea bargains on this subject?

(At this point, the reader must remember the beginning of this section describing how Marines enter a house and why security is

paramount.)

Concerning their identification of the body of the deceased, Iraqi sources as quoted in the official autopsy report say the following:

4.) Awad Ibrihim Awad, the reported brother of Hashim Ibrihim Awad, stated in the official report that he lived approximately 30 yards

away from Hashim’s house and that he witnessed the Marines taking Hashim away. Awad claimed that his brother owned an AK-47 but that he

was not in possession of it when the Marines left Hashim’s house. Capt. Rafie Mohammed Abid, a local Iraqi policeman, called Awad at

0500 and informed him of his brother’s death. According to Awad Ibrihim Awad, his brother was shot in the back and the back of the head

and that Hashim had a ‘Platinum Leg’ which would have hindered his manner and ability of walking.

This contradicts the previous testimony in the formal report by the son, Nassar Hashim Ibrihim Al Awad, in that, after he recounts the

incident about his father’s abduction and describes the number of Marines who took away his father, he continued to describe his first

learning of his father’s death from tribal leader Galeb Alkwad Alabes, who told him that his father’s body is in the Police Station.

Nassar was told that the Police needed someone to identify the body of the man later identified as Awad.

How is this possible? The two members of the same family are contacted by different people, and one is told at 0500 that the Police KNEW

who the dead man was, yet when the son was notified of his ‘father’s death’, he is told the Police are unaware of the identity of the

deceased. What is also curious, is that there is no mentioning of the son calling the Police to ask what happened to his father and

where he was, was he charged with something, or was he alive!

(If an occupation army took away your parent in the middle of the night, wouldn?t the first thing you do when you awake is make a phone

call or inquiry as to his whereabouts?)

The son does another curious thing after receiving a call from the Police; he goes to the Police station with two of his uncles, but NOT

with the one who lived the closest, Awad Ibrihim Awad, and makes no mention of looking for that uncle first, the one which would live

the closest to the deceased.

Nassar claims he went to the Police Station with Saadon Ibrihim Awad and Ali Ibrihim Awad, but NOT with Awad Ibrihim Awad, the uncle who

lived only 30 meters from the very house he was sleeping on the roof of that fateful night??

According to the testimony and recorded statements of HM3 Bacos, the shooting went like this:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6215761

?They took him to a roadside hole, bound him, and, Bacos testified, Sgt. Hutchins fired three rounds into Awad’s head. Then Corp. Trent

Thomas shot Awad in the chest seven to 10 times.?

Pvt. Tyler Jackson said the following in testimony:

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/07/11/news/top_stories/1_03_107_10_07.txt

?Pvt. Tyler Jackson told the nine-member jury that it was Hutchins who announced to the seven men he was leading on a patrol the night

of April 25 that he had a plan. If everyone agreed, Jackson said Hutchins told his men, the squad would go to the home of a suspected

insurgent named Saleh Gowad, seize and kill him.

The platoon had arrested Gowad several weeks earlier, but learned he had been released from custody. Once they had Gowad, Jackson said,

the plan was to march him to the site of a previous roadside bombing, shoot him and make it appear he had an AK-47 and was planting a

bomb. And executing a man considered an “HVI,” or high value individual as the military refers to suspected insurgents, wasn’t something

that caused much angst that night, Jackson said. “Killing the number one HVI in the area did not sound like a bad idea to me,” he told

the three officers and six enlisted men hearing the case against Thomas. When Gowad wasn’t home, the squad decided to go to the home

closest to his where they dragged the sleeping Awad from his bed, Jackson said. They marched him out about 1,000 yards, bound his hands

and feet, gagged him, then shot him, according to Jackson and Bacos, who also testified Tuesday. They didn’t know who Awad was until

told by investigators, they said.?

Cpl. Rob Pennington:

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/02/18/news/top_stories/16_04_492_17_07.txt

?Pennington’s role in the April 26 killing included helping march the 52-year-old Awad to the killing site, binding the victim’s hands

and feet and wiping squad members’ fingerprints from a stolen AK-47. He also was accused of placing that weapon and a shovel in Awad’s

hands in an attempt to make it appear the Iraqi was an insurgent planting a roadside bomb.?

HM3 Bacos own testimony contradicts himself, however, as reported here:

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/02/08/news/top_stories/1_03_482_7_07.txt

?Bacos testified at length Wednesday about the corporal’s actions in the killing of Awad. Thomas, Bacos said, was part of a “snatch

team” that took Awad from his home and helped lead the retired Iraqi policeman to a killing site some 1,000 yards away. During the march

to that site, Thomas repeatedly pushed Awad along and helped bind the hands and feet of the 52-year-old father of 11. Shortly after the

squad from the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment took up positions and fired numerous shots at Awad, Thomas fired three shots at close

range into his chest, Bacos testified. While outlining Thomas’ role in the slaying, Bacos also testified that the plan that led to the

killing was primarily designed and led by the squad’s leader, Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III. At the same time that Thomas was firing three

shots into Awad’s chest, Hutchins fired several rounds into the man’s head, Bacos said.?

But, Bacos? previous statements were this:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6215761

?They took him to a roadside hole, bound him, and, Bacos testified, Sgt. Hutchins fired three rounds into Awad’s head. Then Corp. Trent

Thomas shot Awad in the chest seven to 10 times.?

3 Shots in the chest are not 7 to 10 shots in the chest. Which is correct? Also, who shot first? This testimony is a critical part of a

testimony used to convict Sgt Hutchins of murder and must be and if a person is credible or not, and his story keeps contradicting

itself, how can it be considered accurate?

The following testimony by Pfc. Jodka is also troubling, for it raises more questions as to who is telling the truth:

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/10/27/news/top_stories/1_01_510_25_06.txt

?Four of the men —— Cpls. Marshall Magincalda and Trent Thomas, Lance Cpl. Robert Pennington and Corpsman Bacos —— all headed out to

snatch Gowad from his home. When Bacos testified three weeks ago, he said they could not find Gowad, so instead they grabbed a neighbor

—— Awad. The four troops returned with their captive under a moonless sky, Jodka said. “I overheard Cpl. Thomas tell Sgt. Hutchins that

we got him and he’s in the hole,” Jodka testified, adding that the hole was about 75 yards away. “At this point, you thought the

individual was Saleh Gowad?” the judge asked Jodka. “Yes sir,” he replied. ‘You know what to say’. According to the charges filed in

June, the men bound the hands and feet of Awad —— who was a retired Iraqi policeman —— before shoving him into the hole. Jodka said

Hutchins ordered the men to open fire. But Awad stood up and scrambled out of the hole, which was about 2 1/2 feet deep. “I don’t know

if he stood up after he was shot, or was shot after he stood up,” Jodka said, soon adding, “I couldn’t see the man in the hole at the

time we were firing, sir. I only saw him stand up and run down the road to the north.”

The question that must be raised is how did a man who was bound hand and foot get up to run? The standard method of binding a prisoner

on the battlefield is to use a plastic draw tie, sometimes called a TIE WRAP, often used in industrial applications. Large types are

being used in Iraq to restrain suspects or prisoners since they are lightweight and can be rolled up in your pocket before use and can

be discarded after use.

When applied properly, they cannot come undone; it is a physical impossibility due to its design. That means anyone who had these Draw

Ties (TIE WRAPS) around their wrists or legs, would be unable to remove them themselves without a cutting tool of some sort along with

some physical contortions to maneuver your tool into the correct position.

How could someone whose legs are tied run? How could he get up if the men were standing there? Why are most testimonies of this event

all stating that the man was in the hole when shot, but Jodka?s testimony is that the man tried to get up and run? For anyone to resist

against this type of restraint, you would be exerting great force upon your areas restrained to no avail. If you resisted, there would

be marks of some kind on your body.

(D)THE EXHUMATION, AUTOPSY, PATHOLOGY REPORT AND POSITIVE IDENTIFICATION OF THE DECEASED

The identity of the deceased Iraqi man identified as Awad is also in question. When appearing at the home of Awad, persons who

identified themselves as family members gave testimony to the investigating team of Marines after the incident. There was no attempt to

catalog the identification of these person, no ID?s were copied or transcribed. The identities of all persons in the room were known

only by the name they gave, not by any evidence of who they were according to what the government could prove.

Iraqi persons have identification cards, and Americans took photographs of persons who they were suspect of, and this family did NOT

produce, nor were they asked about any identification confirmation.

Nor were any of the persons there asked to submit DNA samples, including the sons or others claiming to be uncles of the deceased.

The body of the man identified as Hashim Awad was exhumed from what was called the family gravesite. The condition of the gravesite and

the circumstances surrounding the exhumation are questionable.

The grave that was identified as Awad?s was located in what the Awad family said was their family cemetery. A small white tombstone

marked the location and the grave itself had a 12? mound of dirt on the top of the grave. What happens next is puzzling.

The alleged family member of the deceased, Awad Awad, told the exhumation team that the body was buried approximately 1 meter deep, but

off to the side of the actual grave! The mound of dirt, which a person would assume was covering the actual body, was NOT the grave

mound! According to Awad Awad, the actual site of the body was off to the side of the grave and behind some concrete tiles.

What that means is, while a grave mound appears to be piled over the body, the actual body is to the side of the grave mound??

Awad Awad explained that this is standard custom for their culture! While photographs taken by the Marine Corps conclude that this is

the immediate area of the gravesite, there is NO WAY anyone can state that a body that is to the side of a burial mound is the actual

body. It is also questionable to see concrete tiles separating this body from the immediate gravesite that is indicated by the tombstone

of the grave.

The Pathology report contains a DNA analysis from the deceased Iraqi man identified as Hashim Awad and a man who was identified as Awad

Ibrihim Awad, yet the government?s own case has foundered on this part due to the fact they do NOT know the identity of the man

identified as the brother of Awad. There was no evidence of any other family relation by name giving DNA evidence. I wish I knew more,

but it seems the ratio of the percentage of how connected the two persons were was a number that was compared to the whole Earth

population when compared to their ethnic origin. If a person is classified as 614,000 times more likely to be my brother than a random

man in the population, that still leaves quite a few people who are likely to be related. Can it be that the person tested is a cousin?

We don?t know who the first man is in actuality, there were no DNA tests performed or released on the persons claiming to be a child or

parent of the deceased.

As in all autopsies, there is a physical description of the body received and work performed. The location and number of bullet wounds

and locations of these wounds in the autopsy findings contradicts the accounts of all the Marines in their testimony.

All Marines agree that the Iraqi man identified as AWAD was shot before the dead check was performed on him. The exact location of those

wounds was unclear in testimony, but the wounds received after Sgt Hutchins and his squad came face to face with the man firing at them

are accounted for, namely:

a.) 3 Shots in the face done by Sgt Hutchins

b.) 7 to 10 Shots in the torso by Cpl Thomas

The autopsy and pathology report should reflect these accounts with only small additions or corrections, yet this is not the case.

3 similar gunshot wounds, similar to those reported by Sgt Hutchins, are mentioned in the autopsy report, but additional facial gunshot

wounds are also recorded in the autopsy. 1 Additional gunshot wound is recorded to have entered on the left side of the face and exiting

the left side of the face near the left ear. Additional wounds appear on the left side of the neck.

NONE of the accounts of the Marines who took plea bargains spoke of these additional wounds on the left side of the face or left side of

the neck. These wounds described are serious, would produce heavy bleeding and possible be a cause of death in themselves due to heavy

bleeding, yet there is no mentioning of these wounds. Why?

It must be emphasized that the testimony given states that Cpl. Thomas shot 7 to 10 times into the torso of this Iraqi Man. The autopsy

does NOT record 7 to 10 shots in the torso at all. The autopsy records 2 shots in the lateral right aspect, and one entrance wound which

caused internal injuries, but did NOT mention 7 to 10 gunshots or multiple gunshots to the chest or abdomen at all.

The autopsy records a gunshot wound to the right buttock and pelvis, the anterior right forearm with 2 wounds, and a gunshot wound to

the right thigh. Those additional wounds here would indicate that he was moving when shot and his right side was in the line of fire of

the advancing Marines if this was the actual man these Marines were shooting at, yet none of the recorded evidence agrees with the sworn

statements.

An additional problem with the identification of the body is the claim that ?Hashim Awad? had a rod in his leg, was once described as

having a ?platinum leg? and also being known as ?Hashim the Lame?. The autopsy did show a healed fracture and did show that 2 wire

fixtures were used to assist in healing, but this is certainly NOT a debilitating wound that would label anyone ?Lame? or disabled.

(Editor?s note: I myself have several pins surgically installed due to a shoulder injury, located in my shoulder in 2004, have had bone

graft surgery on my right humerous as a teenager before my service in the Marine Corps, and recently had 2 spinal surgeries in an 11

month period since March of 2007. Having an old fracture wired is not debilitating)

One additional point in all this, is that the autopsy records NO SOOT or STIPPLING wounds to any of the wounds recorded. Yet, each and

every of the Marines, in their plea bargains, stated that Sgt Hutchins shot the Iraqi man from a distance of approximately 3 feet away

with a high powered military assault weapon, 5.56 millimeter projectile whose muzzle velocity is approximately 2270 feet per second. So

did Cpl. Thomas according to the sworn testimony. Anyone shot at that close a range would certainly have gunpowder residue embedded in

their face, but according to the autopsy examination, microscopic analysis showed there was none!

What must also be mentioned is how the autopsy clearly indicated that there appeared to be no hemorrhage or other injury of any kind

after the wrists and ankles were dissected. To be fair, the amount of decomposition that occurred may be a factor in that, but that

itself is not proof enough that there were restraints or cuffs used or not used. Which ever it is, is does NOT prove cuffs were used,

regardless of how the story is told.

Conclusion:

It is with great difficulty that the only conclusion that can be gathered from this report is that the men of Kilo Company, known as The

Pendleton 8, are innocent and were prosecuted for reasons known only to the Marine Corps, NCIS and the JAG Corps, for the evidence that

the government had in it?s hands exonerated these men, not convict them.

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