Marine defendant says squad did not execute Iraqis at Haditha
Associated Press, June 14, 2007
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — A Marine facing murder charges in a squad action that killed 24 Iraqis in Haditha told a military court Thursday that one of the men he shot was pointing a weapon at him and no Iraqis were executed. Lance Cpl. Justin L. Sharratt made the assertions in an unsworn statement during his preliminary hearing on three counts of unpremeditated murder. Because it was unsworn, Sharratt could not be cross-examined.
His account followed testimony by a former member of the squad who said the Marines were not receiving insurgent machine-gun fire when they carried out the Nov. 19, 2005, killings, a claim that runs counter to the key argument of the three Marines charged with murder—that they believed they were under attack and responded appropriately.
Sharratt acknowledged shooting several men, including one in the head. He said that man was pointing an AK-47 at him.
"I am disciplined and always try to act professionally. On Nov. 19 I acted as I had been trained to do," he said.
"We did not execute any Iraqis," he said in a statement that expressed pride in his service in Iraq and in the Marine Corps and thanked his parents for standing by him.
"I'd rather be tried by a jury of 12 of my peers than carried away in a casket by six," he said.
Earlier, there was testimony from Trent Graviss, who was a lance corporal in the squad at the time. He recently left active duty and is not charged in the deaths.
"To the best of your knowledge, was there an ambush on your squad?" asked prosecutor Capt. Christian Hur.
"No, sir," replied Graviss, who testified via telephone from his home in Kentucky.
The two dozen Iraqis were killed in and around several houses soon after a roadside bomb exploded and killed one Marine. Those charged have maintained the bomb was the start of a coordinated ambush on the U.S. convoy that was followed up with machine-gun fire.
The three men Sharratt is accused of murdering died in one of the homes. Defense attorneys showed photographs of four men who died in that residence. All appeared to have been shot in the head, but several had blood on their torsos, indicating they could have been shot there, too.
Air Force Lt. Col. Elizabeth Rouse, a forensics expert, testified that it did not appear that the men had been killed at close range. Sharratt has acknowledged shooting the men, but said he felt threatened and believed they may have been armed.
The photographs were of poor quality and in at least one picture it was not clear where the bullet entered the victim's head, though blood could be seen pooling in his ear.
Aside from Sharratt, squad leader Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich and Lance Cpl. Stephen B. Tatum are also charged with murder in the killings, the biggest U.S. criminal case of the Iraq war.
A fourth enlisted man, Sgt. Sanick P. Dela Cruz, was initially charged with murder but prosecutors dismissed charges against him. Four officers are charged with dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the killings.
Both Wuterich and Tatum were in the public viewing area of the courtroom Thursday.
During a recess, Wuterich's military attorney Lt. Col. Colby Vokey said he was not concerned about Graviss' testimony, as it is inconsistent to what other witnesses have testified.
"All the other testimony indicates that the Marines were receiving small-arms fire," Vokey said.
Graviss also described the moments immediately after the roadside bomb blast, when he heard Wuterich firing his machine gun. Graviss said he saw a "pink mist in the air where I assumed the people were, it was like a blood spatter in the air." Wuterich is accused of killing 18 people, including five men who were standing by a car.
Graviss said he went with Dela Cruz and an Iraqi soldier to clear a house close to the site of the explosion and detained two or three Iraqis but did not shoot anyone.
Marine maintains he shot in self-defense
North County Times, June 14, 2007
CAMP PENDLETON ---- A Marine who survived a roadside bombing in Haditha two years ago disputed reports that the attack was followed by small arms fire.
Marines involved in the civilians killings have maintained that the bombing was followed by an attack of small arms fire aimed at the troops, leading the Marines to assault four homes resulting in 19 Iraqi deaths.
Testifying on the fourth day of a hearing for Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt, who is charged with three counts of unpremeditated murder for his role in the deaths of 24 civilians in Haditha in the fall of 2005, Lance Cpl. Trent Graviss said he never heard shots consistent with AK-47 fire, the weapon commonly used by insurgents.
Graviss said that in the minutes and hours following the Nov. 19 bombing that killed a Marine and injured two others, the only shots he heard sounded like M-16 rifle fire, the weapon carried by most Marines.
Sharratt contends he shot men in self defense. He said the three he killed presented a threat and the first man he shot was holding an AK-47 in a threatening manner.
Graviss said he saw Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich firing at those men and shortly thereafter saw mist in the air that looked like blood. Wuterich is charged with 13 counts of murder and faces a hearing later this year.
As he and Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz detained several people during a search of a house following the bombing, Graviss said he heard a disturbing comment.
"He said we should have shot all the people," Graviss testified.
Dela Cruz was among the four enlisted men charged last December in the Haditha killings. The charges were dropped in April in exchange for his testimony.
Also testifying this morning was Lt. Col. Elizabeth Rouse, a forensic pathologist and medical examiner, who said photographs of four men slain inside one of the homes showed head wounds from shots that came from at least two feet away. No autopsies were conducted on any of the bodies and relatives would not allow U.S. authorities to exhume any remains for examination.
Rouse's testimony would seem to controvert statements given to investigators by survivors of the men, who contend they were herded into the room and killed execution style.
Sharratt has acknowledged killing three of the men in what his attorneys maintain was an act of self-defense. Wuterich shot a fourth man as he followed Sharratt into the room, according to testimony.
Sharratt's case is the first of the accused shooters at Haditha to reach court. When it concludes, the hearing officer, Lt. Col. Paul Ware, will write a report stating whether he believes there is sufficient evidence to order the 22-year-old Sharratt to trial.
The hearing is expected to end Friday.