By ALLISON HOFFMAN, The Associated Press
Monday, June 11, 2007; 3:21 PM
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- A Marine was justified in killing three Iraqi brothers in a battle that left 24 civilians dead in the town of Haditha, his lawyer argued Monday before a military court.
Lance Cpl. Justin L. Sharratt, 22, appeared in fatigues at the Article 32 hearing to determine whether he should be court-martialed on three counts of unpremeditated murder in the biggest U.S. criminal case of the Iraq war.
"The forensics in this case dispel the notion that this was an execution," said his attorney, Gary Myers. "He's not a murderer. Rather, he's extremely brave."
Sharratt's case in the shooting deaths of brothers Jasib, Kahtan and Jamal Aiad Ahmed inside a house in the Iraqi town is the first of the three to go to an Article 32 investigation, the military equivalent of a grand jury.
Myers has not disputed that Sharratt killed the men but has said his actions were justified. Sharratt, of Canonsburg, Pa., is one of three enlisted men accused in the battle that left 24 Iraqi men, women and children dead on Nov. 19, 2005. Murder charges have been dropped against a fourth enlisted man, who will be required to testify about his squadmates' actions.
Additionally, four officers are charged with dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the killings.
The two dozen people were slain after a roadside bomb killed Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas in his Humvee.
In a statement dated March 19, 2006, Sharratt told investigators he believed the entire area was hostile and that he could therefore "use any means necessary and my training to eliminate the hostile threat."
He described entering a house after the blast and shooting an armed man in the face. Sharratt told investigators he then went into a bedroom, firing at a man holding an AK-47 rifle and subsequently shooting at others in the room after the armed man fell.
"I could not tell while I was shooting if they were armed or not, but I felt threatened," Sharratt said in his statement.
Sharratt, a veteran of the fierce 2004 battles in Fallujah, was in Haditha on his second Iraq tour.
The troops are from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines.
Defense attorneys for the highest-ranking Marine officer accused in the case, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, were expected to present closing statements Monday in Chessani's own hearing.
An attorney for Capt. Randy Stone, a military lawyer facing charges in the case, said Saturday that an investigating officer recommended dismissing criminal charges against the 19-year Marine veteran and handling the case administratively.
A final decision will be made by commanding general Lt. Gen. James Mattis.