Posted on 04/23/2007 12:17:30 PM PDT by RedRover
In 1971, Capt. Gary Myers was an Army JAG, assigned to Capt. Ernest Medina’s defense.
There was worldwide interest in the court martial of Lt. Calley's commander. Myers' colleague on the defense team, civilian attorney F. Lee Bailey, reveled in the attention and gave the press conferences. Meanwhile, Capt. Myers had no comment for reporters and went about the patient work of winning the case.
Today, Myers represents a Haditha Marine, LCpl. Justin Sharratt. Reporters from the New York Times and Washington Post are practically camped at Myer’s door. But, even as a civilian, Myers is an old-school Army lawyer, and has no comment for the press.
Meanwhile, this past week, we were flooded with leaks in the Haditha case.
On Saturday, a headline screamed out from the front page of the Washington Post: Report on Haditha Condemns Marines. The story purported to summarize the classified Bargewell Report on Haditha (somehow "obtained" by the Post’s, Josh White).
When asked about the leak, Lt. Col. Sean Gibson (spokesman at Marine Corps Central Command in Florida) said the report "is part of an ongoing investigation, and as such is neither releasable nor would it be appropriate for me to comment on it."
Lt. Col. Gibson's statement was an honorable one. But the leak of classified material lapped up by the Post was yet another victory for the bastards, who continue their winning streak. Let's tally up their victories over the past six months.
1. November, 2006: The NCIS investigative report on the Haditha incident was leaked to Vanity Fair.
2. November 21, 2006: Unnamed "Pentagon sources" unleashed hell on unsuspected families of servicemen by telling NPR's Morning Edition that five Marines were expected to face charges for murder. Not only that. The names, ages, and hometowns of the five Marines were given out. The names were picked up by other media outlets across the country and around the world.
Included on the list was Cpl. Hector Salinas ("age 22, of Houston, Texas"). Salinas was never charged.
3. December 5, 2006: A "Marine official and a lawyer involved in the case" told that the New York Times that at least five Marines are expected to the be charged in Haditha deaths. The names and hometowns of the five were given again (for the benefit of anyone who missed the NPR broadcast), including Cpl. Salinas. No correction, apology, or explanation was ever made.
(Charges were finally filed against eight Marines on December 21st)
4 and 5. January 6, 2007: A red letter day for bastardy. A "senior defense official" told the Associated Press that his previous leaks were correct: evidence didn't back the Marines.
But this was small potatoes compared to the bombshell in the Washington Post. That paper "obtained" the entire 10,000-page NCIS report with hundreds of pictures). The Post's article, by leak-licker Josh White, was selective with the facts to paint a picture of guilt.
Then the bastards slept until...
6. April 20, 2007: A leaker identified as "someone involved in the case who declined to be identified because the documents are not public" told the Associated Press that seven Marines had been granted immunity . Marine spokesman Lt. Col. Sean Gibson declined to comment. He said, "As this is an ongoing investigation, the government will not confirm the identity of potential witnesses or discuss the conditions under which they may appear."
7. April 22, 2007: The Washington Post "obtained" the confidential report by Army Maj. Gen. Eldon Bargewell about Haditha. With grotesque inaccuracy, the Post claimed the report condemned Marines.
And that's where we stand. At least seven leaks in the past six months in a case whose integrity has been questionable from the start.
The lull in the leaks between January 6th and April 20th may have been because Lt. Gen. James Mattis ordered an investigation. On the other hand, Capt. Jay Delarosa (a Marine spokesman) has had no comment on the investigation since it was announced so it's unclear where it stands.
I have contacted General Mattis' office and the USMC Inspector General. I have made a case for the investigation to be public. I believe it is essential for the leakers, and their motives, to be exposed. There has continued to be no comment.
When honorable men see bastards at work, sometimes "no comment" isn't enough. The Corps owes protection to Marines whose good names have been dragged through the mud, whose families have been subjected to the worst kinds of torment and harassment from the media.
As in the Medina case decades ago, men of honor such as Gary Myers are fighting the real fight, and fighting to win in court under the rule of law. JAG prosecutors are working honorably as well. The truth should prevail.
But anyone who cares about a fair fight should be as concerned as I am that the bastards are back.
David Allender can be reached at WarChronicle@AOL.Com.
Here's a bit...
A congressman said Wednesday that about six Marines would be charged in the killing of 24 civilians, many of them women and children, last year in the Iraqi town of Haditha.
Rep. Mark Udall, D-Colorado, did not know what the charges were but said they were serious.
So there you have a congressman blabbing after a confidential briefing from the Marines.
I didn't include this in the list of leaks because Udall didn't hide his identity. But he belongs on anyone's list of bastards in this case.
FEB 4 2005 LtGen James N. Mattis is recorded by the television station KNSD in San Diego speaking during a panel discussion hosted by the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association:
“Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight. You know, it’s a hell of a hoot. ... It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right upfront with you, I like brawling. “You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil,” Mattis continued. “You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway. So it’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them.”
CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad in response. “These disturbing remarks are indicative of an apparent indifference to the value of human life.”
MAR 2003 through early 2006.
Twenty-four Army personnel were charged in connection with civilian deaths. Twelve were convicted of crimes and received jail sentences that ranged from 45 days to 25 years. Four others were tried at courts-martial, resulting in one acquittal and three convictions with no confinement. Charges against two others were dropped. Six received administrative punishments, including four who cooperated with government prosecutions of their superiors.
Five Marines were involved in homicide cases. One officer was convicted of dereliction of duty and maltreatment for strangling an Iraqi prisoner in 2003 and was dismissed from the Corps; one was acquitted; and charges against three others were dropped.
MAY 12 2005 Lt. Col. Mark Winn, Hearing Officer, recommends charges against Pantano be dropped
MAY 26 2005 Maj. Gen. Richard Huck, 2ND MarDiv Commander, drops all charges against Pantano
NOV 19 2005 Haditha Massacre of Miguel Terrazas
NOV 29 2005 USMC Memorial Service for Terrazas
JAN 2006 Major General Stephen Johnson, USMC, (promoted to Major General FEB 2003) and in command of II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) since NOV 2004;deploying to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom 04-06 until January 2006, and who was top Marine in Iraq when the Haditha incident occurred is assigned independent duty as an Officer Selection Officer in Oklahoma City. Do the math on his next promotion.
FEB 14 2006 Army Lt. Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, commander of multinational forces in Iraq, appoints Army Col. Gregory Watt to preliminary Haditha investigation
FEB 24 2006 – The Marine Corps officially joined the ranks of U.S. Special Operations Command
MAR 2006 begins period where17 U.S. troops have been charged with murder in three separate incidents. MAR 9 Chiarelli receives the findings of Watt’s preliminary report and directs further review. MAR 12 Top Marine commander in Western Iraq, Richard Zilmer, requests NCIS probe MAR 13 The initial NCIS team arrives in Haditha.
MAR 19 2006 Chiarelli appoints Army Maj. Gen. Eldon Bargewell to investigate training of Marines in the Rules of Engagement and the Law of Armed Conflict; and whether the command climate in 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment encouraged the disciplined application of the Rules of Engagement and the Law of Armed Conflict
Bargewell served with the Rangers until 1981, then spent 17 years as a major with the Special Forces Operational Detachment — Delta Force and in 1998, he took command of Special Operations Forces in Europe, overseeing activities in Kosovo and Bosnia as a brigadier general.
MAR 19 2006 Time magazine publishes report on the Iraqi allegations of massacre and reporting in Marine chain of command
APR 2006 Chiarelli orders officers to look at every escalation-of-force incident that led to civilian casualties
APR 26 2006 Iraqis claim that seven Marines and a Navy medic intentionally enter a house in Hamdania, remove a disabled Iraqi civilian, shoot him, cover it up to make him look like an insurgent, slap his face with his own hand. This man is later found to have no head, hands and feet are bound with duct tape, and no evidence of any disability
MAY 17 2006 exmarine jack Murtha screws the pooch
MAY 31, 2006 Mattis, who popularized the slogan “no better friend, no worse enemy” -the slogan used by and against Ilario Pantano- is chosen to take command of the I Marine Expeditionary Force
JUN 2006 Major General Richard Huck serving as Assistant Deputy Commandant for Plans, Policies and Operations, Headquarters Marine Corps.
JUN 15-16 2006 Bargewell’s report forwarded to Chiarelli and from leaks it is said that no coverup was found, just that officers failed to ask the right questions. Official USMC statement was that Marines were adequately trained on the Rules of Engagement and Law of Armed Conflict but that reporting of the incident up the chain of command was inaccurate and untimely.
JUN 16 Major General Richard Huck served as Commanding General of the 2nd MAR DIV from 2004 until JUN 16. The Haditha Marines were more specifically 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, normally assigned to 1st MAR DIV however, at the time of the incident they had been temporarily attached to 2nd MARINE REGINMENT, 2nd MAR DIV to strengthen Marine operations in theater.
JUN 19 Huck retires
JUL 2006 Chiarelli faults the senior staff of the Second Marine Division, Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, and the Second Regimental Combat Team, Col. Stephen W. Davis, and recommended unspecified disciplinary action for some officers, concluding some officers were derelict in their duties per NY Times via two anonymous defense officials.
JUL 7 2006 Bargewell Report forwarded to General Casey, Commander, Multi-National Forces – Iraq and then to U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Central Command for appropriate action.
JUL 17 2006 U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Central Command provides copy of the Bargewell investigation to NCIS
August 16, 2006 Mattis takes command of I MEF
SEP 2006 Chiarelli made special assistant to the commander of Central Command with responsibility for developing the military capabilities of nations in the Middle East and Central Asia
OCT 2006 Bargewell retires
DEC 14 2006 Lt. Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, MNC-I Commanding General, officially hands over his title
DEC 21, 2006: The Marines file charges of unpremeditated murder against Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz, Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt and Lance Cpl. Stephen B. Tatum. Charges of dereliction of duty charges for failing to investigate are filed against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, Capt. Lucas McConnell, Capt. Randy Stone and 1st Lt. Andrew A Grayson. Grayson also faces charges of making a false official statement and of obstruction of justice.
DEC 23 2006
Mattis: I was talking to a lieutenant in Haditha, he told me that because they are now all connected nowadays in their FOBs, he could read stories about Haditha. He said, ‘I guarantee you there has not been a reporter in Haditha in my last two and a half months here.’
We’re seeing, I think, an unwitting passing of the enemy’s message, uncritical, unwitting passing of the enemy’s message because the enemy has successfully denied the Western media access to the battlefields.
I’m not sure what Lloyds of London is charging now, I think it’s over $5,000 a month insurance for a reporter or photographer to go in. But the murder, the kidnapping, the intimidation means that, in many cases, we have media folks who are relying on stringers who are Iraqi.
Now you can have any kind of (complaint) about the American media or Western media you want, but there is at least a nod, an effort toward objectivity. The stringers who are being brought in, who are bringing in these stories, are not bringing that same degree of objectivity.
So on the one hand, our enemy is denying our media access to the battlefield, where anything perhaps that I say as a general is subject to any number of interpretations, challenges, questions, but the enemy’s story basically gets there without that because our media is unable to challenge them. It’s unwitting, but at the same time, it can promote the enemy’s agenda, simply because there is an apparent attempt at objectivity.
FEB 10 2007 Casey, who deployed to Bosnia-Herzegovina from JUL1996 to AUG 1997 where he and the Rear Command Post staff were based in Slavonski Brod, Croatia, took command of the 1st Armored Division JUL 1999. He relinquished command of the division JUL 2001, served as Director of Strategic Plans and Policy, J-5, the Joint Staff from OCT 2001 to JAN 2003-then became Director of The Joint Staff from JAN 2003 to OCT 2003 and then 30th Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, serving in that post until JUN 2004. Served as the senior coalition commander in Iraq from JUN 2004 to FEB 2007 when he relinquished the reins to Petraeus…but not before making this statement in JAN 2007: “The longer we in the U.S. forces continue to bear the main burden of Iraq’s security, it lengthens the time that the government of Iraq has to take the hard decisions about reconciliation and dealing with the militias. And the other thing is that they can continue to blame us for all of Iraq’s problems, which are at base their problems. It’s always been my view that a heavy and sustained American military presence was not going to solve the problems in Iraq over the long term.” JAN 4 2007 Tony Snow announced Lieutenant General David H. Petraeus for promotion to General and assignment as the coalition commander in Iraq in JAN 2007. Casey was concurrently nominated for elevation to Chief of Staff of the Army, the Senate confirmed his nomination FEB 8 2007 with a bipartisan vote of 83-14. Interestingly here is the bipartisanship who voted no: Bayh (D-IN)Clinton (D-NY)Feinstein (D-CA)Harkin (D-IA)McCain (R-AZ)Graham (R-SC)Bond (R-MO)Bunning (R-KY) Chambliss (R-GA)Coburn (R-OK)Smith (R-OR)Sununu (R-NH)Ensign (R-NV)DeMint (R-SC). Tony also announced the retirement of
General John Abizaid.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44662-2004Jun15.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/27/AR2006082700770_pf.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/03/AR2006060300710_pf.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/07/world/middleeast/07cnd-haditha.html?ex=1309924800&en=a64c2d17f39a8c3e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss]
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/12/26/perspective/17_55_4312_23_06.txt
I’ll just throw this in for dessert.
March 15, 2006: In a second incident in which Iraqis claim that U.S. forces intentionally killed civilians and that eventually will attract the scrutiny of Pentagon investigators, U.S. forces attack a site at Ishaqi, a village north of Baghdad, looking for a suspected terrorist and a bomb-maker. Under heavy fire, U.S. forces bring in attack helicopters and warplanes and later find the bodies of the bomb-maker and three civilians. An official military report says that as many as nine civilians could be dead, though it’s hard to say because the walls have collapsed. Iraqi civilians claim the Americans shot the civilians, then destroyed to building to hide evidence. The military denies that troops targeted civilians.
On June 2, a military investigation into allegations that U.S. troops intentionally killed Iraqi civilians in the Ishaqi raid clears the troops of misconduct, despite dramatic video footage of slain children. The probe found that the escalation of force was justified under the circumstances (the troops were taking heavy fire) and that allegations the military intentionally killed family is not warranted.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6663367
My son patrolled the streets of Haditha. The 1/23 Marines lost a number of guys there in 2004/2005. Likewise, the 3/25 Marines suffered terribly in 2005. The 3/1, seasoned veterans, took over. Anyone have a clue as to how many Marines and Soldiers we’ve lost in the tri-cities area of Haditha, Haqlaniyah and Barwana? I had to stop counting. It’s a runner-up to Fallujah and Ramadi.
Does anyone on our own government on this side of the pond even care about these young men? It would seem not. The news and the leaks of information all seem to me that people want political attention and personal gain, at the expense of those front-line warriors who are risking their lives every day. These young men are not seasoned mercenaries, they are our children. Or they would be children but for the fact that they have been asked to deal with death, uncertainty and treachery all too soon, the latter from their own countrymen.
I am beginning to get sick of this country and its inhabitants, present company excepted. There is honor about us, but we just can’t see it because of the bastards who surround us.
Semper Fidelis,
USMCPOP - “Anyone have a clue as to how many Marines and Soldiers we’ve lost in the tri-cities area of Haditha, Haqlaniyah and Barwana? I had to stop counting. It’s a runner-up to Fallujah and Ramadi.”
A lot! Every one of those lives are precious to America’s freedom and way of life. The honor they bring to this country is beyond compare.
Marine_Uncle - “General Mattis. Do your duty. Your Marines come first.”
AGREED!
The Ishaqi incident was cleared up in less than 3 months. Haditha and Hamdania?
Okay, I’m not advocating any violence. We just want the leakers caught, stopped, and face their own judgement. Actually, it would be quite appropriate to see them face the same treatment they have allowed these Marines to endure. Accusations, charges preferred, Congressmen implicating them as guilty, noone in their own work force who can stand up for them, leaks about their culpability, and a media all too happy to report on the demise of the leaker(s) who must be guilty as sin....because don’t you know, it’s the seriousness of the charge that matters.
Oh, and on top of that, maybe they should have to spend all their personal finances, or that of their extended family to defend themselves before any charges have been made.
All great ideas. I cannot understand how a “senior defense official” could do such a thing to young Marines and their families.
Well said!!!
But I would add; How do we UNDO the damage that has been done to these marines and their families?
Huck told everyone to piss off with regard to Pantano.
Mattis then pissed in everyone’s cornflakes again, with his remarks.
The USMC (with an already big head in some folks opinion), gets Special Ops, the Army investigates the Marine Corps, Huck becomes a casualty, and Mattis is set up to hold the bag- and someone’s trying to make him eat their cornflakes.
What a good diversion - murtha’s smoke and mirrors. He won’t have to share as many of his cookies if he’s got his fat fingers in the cookie jar while everyone else is busy setting up crosses to crucify Marines.
murtha is a dirty pig.
Lest I forget, allow me to include the word “allegedly”.
The April 22nd article, Military Cites 'Negligence' in Aftermath of Iraq Killings has this:
The 130-page report, by Maj. Gen. Eldon A. Bargewell of the Army, did not conclude that the senior officers covered up evidence or committed a crime. But it said the Marine Corps command in Iraq was far too willing to tolerate civilian casualties and dismiss Iraqi claims of abuse by marines as insurgent propaganda, according to lawyers who have read it.
snip
General Bargewell's report, completed at the request of Lt. Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, the day-to-day commander of American forces in Iraq at the time, did not focus on the killings themselves, but rather on commanders' handling of the aftermath.
The Washington Post published details of the report's findings on Saturday. Spokesmen for the Marine Corps declined to comment, citing hearings for the three enlisted marines charged with murder in the case and for four officers charged with dereliction of duty for failing to ensure a proper investigation.
General Bargewell's report was said to have found what it called "inattention and negligence, in certain cases willful negligence," among Marine officers who reported the civilian deaths immediately up their chain of command in ways that the report said were "untimely, inaccurate and incomplete."
It is critical of the Marine division commander, Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, and the regimental commander, Col. Stephen W. Davis, for fostering a perception that civilian Iraqi lives were not as important as American lives and for failing to investigate the civilian deaths in Haditha, lawyers who read the report said.
Lawyers for the four officers charged with dereliction of duty--a lieutenant colonel, two captains and a first lieutenant--disagreed Saturday with the report's conclusions about them.
"Colonel Chessani, Colonel Davis and General Huck all viewed this--and still do--as a legitimate combat action," said Brian J. Rooney, a civilian lawyer for Lt. Col. Jeffrey R. Chessani, who was relieved of his command and is the highest-ranking officer known publicly to be punished in the Haditha matter. "That same night and the next morning Colonel Chessani reported up the chain of command what he had learned about the attacks," including that marines had killed civilians. "I don't know how that's untimely, inaccurate and incomplete."
Now comes the important part vis-a-vis Murtha's cover-up claim...
The Bargewell report, which was recently declassified, also established that junior officers, including a captain who issued a news release on the episode that blamed a roadside bomb planted by insurgents for most of the deaths, knew from the beginning that marines had killed the civilians, the lawyers said.
The captain, Jeffrey S. Pool, told General Bargewell's investigators that he was given reports from battalion commanders that accurately described the marines' killing of civilians, said lawyers who read the report. But Captain Pool said he issued a news release blaming insurgents for the deaths because he believed that the killings were ultimately a direct result of the roadside bombing of the marines, the lawyers said.
"The way I saw it was this," Captain Pool told two colonels questioning him, according to a lawyer who read the report to a reporter. "A bomb blast went off, or was initiated, that is what started, that is the reason they're getting this, is a bomb blew up, killed people. We killed people back, and that's the story." (Since the investigation, the captain has been promoted to major and is again working as a public affairs officer in Anbar Province.)
Lawyers for the four officers charged with failing to properly investigate the civilian killings blame the inaccurate news release for creating the false perception that the Marine Corps chain of command had covered up the killing of civilians. But one lawyer also said that the captain's thinking reflected that of his superiors, who believed that civilian casualties, though regrettable, were an inevitable part of war.
-----------
I haven't seen any bloggers pick up on this yet. Most Americans still believe Murtha's lie that there was a cover-up.
....”The captain, Jeffrey S. Pool, told General Bargewell’s investigators that he was given reports from battalion commanders that accurately described the marines’ killing of civilians, said lawyers who read the report. But Captain Pool said he issued a news release blaming insurgents for the deaths because he believed that the killings were ultimately a direct result of the roadside bombing of the marines, the lawyers said.”...
Okay, if this leak is true, why were any officers charged again? Captain Pool changes the info in his press release - no charges. What are the four officers guilty of at this poin?
COL. DAVIS: What we’re seeing, and it’s tragic, quite frankly, we’re seeing young kids that are being sent out as suicide bombers, kids probably the age of 15, 16, 17. Some of the remains we’re able to recover and you’re able to put age to these kids.
And it’s really unfortunate that the terrorists are picking on that vulnerable section of a society where they pump these kids full of visions and they bring them to a place like this, ultimately and generally, to harm fellow Iraqis and fellow Arabs. The bomb-making — clearly we’re still getting hurt by IEDs. But we are much more sophisticated about how we counter those right now, and we’re encouraged by those trends.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COL. DAVIS: That is safe to say. If you would like to look at a metric for success out here, a year ago in January when they had the election, there were virtually no votes in western Al Anbar province. On October 15th, we were able to garner 7,500 votes out here, and in the election that was just held on December 15th, to include the area of operations that includes Hit, that number was over 72,000 votes. I think that that’s a fair metric of progress out here.
Q And why do you bring up Hit in particular?
COL. DAVIS: Right now, Hit has been — had different units operating in that — under their operational control. So at times it technically has not been part of Regimental Combat Team-2’s area of operations.
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2006/02/mil-060210-dod02.htm
______________________________________________________
This is interesting, but I don’t necessarily agree with all her conclusions.
http://hotair.com/archives/2007/03/10/video-upi-reporter-gets-emotional-over-iraq/
Here's the most optimistic answer.
None of the Marines have actually been charged at this point. The accused will only be charged, or not, as a result of the Article 32 hearings (as in a civilian grand jury).
An Article 32 hearing is considered part of the investigation. The most optimistic interpretation is that charges were brought so that a full investigation can take place. If the Marines were not brought before an Investigating Officer, a cloud of suspicion would always hang over these men.
If you trust in the Corps and the process, that optimistic view is also the reasonable one.
One wishes a Corps spokesman would say all this. As I said above, sometimes an honorable "no comment" isn't enough. There is a world outside the Corps and the bastards are running it.
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