[xarmydog]

Yes command influence was a major part in it.Everyone was scared of this Commander and did not want on his bad side.They have already been tried by the media,etc.All that is left is the formalities of punishment.They will absolutely need the best representation any one or anything can provide.I made my rank quickly for the simple fact I took care of my men.Many times I have witnessed suck up leaders throw their men under the bus for a brownie point.I despised those types of men.If anyone thinks these men will get a fair trial is off their rocker.The judges more than likely have already been hand picked and are just going to go through the motions.Recruitment will suffer greatly.

[RedRover]

Last I heard, there have been no autopsies so the battle won't be fought over physical evidence. It will be over ROE.

There's a PR lull right now because there's been no real news since Dec. 21st.

That'll change once the hearings start. Our job will be to get the truth out. And hope that gets some traction in political and media circles.

We have to hope that we can be a positive force for these Marines.

[Girlene]

Well, if the commanders, prosecutors, and convening authorities have any pressure put on them from above, then the best we, the public, can do is to push back and exert public political pressure for the Marines' defense.

The prosecution's strengths at this point will probably be lots of analysis of physical evidence and the Iraqi witnesses. These are also their weaknesses. There will be no autopsies, the physical environment would have been contaminated and unsecured for several months. I seriously doubt the witnesses will travel to the US. The prosecution will hang their hat on the pictures taken at the scene by our own Marines (as required by the Iraq gov't) and boatloads of analysis of what they signify. I doubt these photos will be made public, beyond the hearings. The analysis of the physical evidence is where questioning NCIS's credibility comes in. How good is NCIS's analysis? - it will be interesting to see how the defense handles this.