Posted on 03/02/2008 6:50:32 PM PST by RedRover
In November 2006, Jason Wayne Washburn was a member of the 3/1 Marines Weapons Company in Haditha. Today he is a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War.
Washburn wasn't in Haditha the morning of November 19th, and didn’t see what happened. But is coming to Washington to testify about it anyway. He will be part of Winter Soldier II on March 13-16. As Washburn says on his IVAW profile page, “it was a squad in my unit that went on a rampage after they were hit with an I.E.D. and ended up killing around 26 civilians.”
How does Washburn know what happened in Haditha? According to the London Times, he heard about it from his good friend, Sgt Sanick Dela Cruz.
Dela Cruz is one of the sleaziest characters to emerge from the Haditha prosecution. And I say that reluctantly. I wanted to believe the best of Dela Cruz and gave him every benefit of the doubt.
But facts are facts. Dela Cruz lied to NCIS agents, then, when he failed a polygraph lied about his first lie. Incredibly, the government offered him immunity, but, thankfully, his testimony has not been believed. An Investigating Officer is on record as saying he could not rely on Dela Cruz for the truth.
So here we go again. Marines will be condemned for Haditha based on rumors and sea stories. After an exhaustive investigation, there is no evidence to support Washburn's claim of "rampaging Marines".
Unfortunately, it doesn’t stop there. Washburn claims that Haditha “wasn’t an isolated incident”.
If I was a Marine who served with Jason Wayne Washburn, I would be very, very nervous. We now have the precedent of inactive servicemen being charged with war crimes in civilian court. The media is standing by to destroy the lives of any military member accused of a crime even on the flimsiest hearsay evidence. And flimsy hearsay evidence is what Washburn has to offer.
The story is developing and we’ll have updates.
Ping
If this is true, then this person, as well as anyone who lies about his/her military experiences (or lack thereof), should be prosecuted to the fullest extent permissible under the law.
It was far more serious than any malfeasance of his own in Viet Nam. He and his pals smeared a whole generation of US troops. And he never apologized.
'Winter Soldier II' is about as relevant as 'Woodstock 1994' - - that is, nothing more than an embarrassing attempt by gray-ponytailed losers and sugared-up college kids to relive history. As for Washburn, even the Marines have their share of what we used to call "sh!+birds" and he fits the profile to a tee. Let him and the rest of the mice squeak - - 'Winter Soldier II' will be forgotten as quickly as 'Woodstock 1994'.
FRegards,
LH
One part of the Frontline documentary that I remember well was Justin’s dismay of the betrayal he was forced to deal with.
I didn't think Washburn was lying about being a Marine. But if he says anything that contradicts the official record without having direct, credible, corroborated, first-hand evidence to back it up, then that should be considered perjury. Certainly there has to be some military regulation (I do not know, I am not military) that covers this sort of thing.
At least I would think if a witness is doing the same thing in a civilian court, perjury charges would apply.
And as for Jack Murtha, that man is a living disgrace to the USA. He makes Benedict Arnold look like a great patriot.
Sounds like this Washburn may be joined at the hip with Murtha the Mouth.
Thanks for getting the word out Red! There will be reps from “our side” live-blogging from Winter Soldier II so we’ll get the scoop first hand and can debunk the crap outta it.
That interview, if true, proves unlawful command influence. The Commandant of the Marine Corps had convinced a Congressman of the defendant’s guilt....everything looked to the Commandant as it looked to the Congressman.
That fits them both perfectly, they’re now members of a very small group.
Amen to that!
I have a feeling that Dela Cruz - - who actually has a pretty good history of serving admirably in combat - - may not be the brightest bulb in the knife drawer. I think the prosecutors threatened him, intimidated him, and spun him around like a top until he was so confused he didn’t know what he saw or heard. In fact, I think he was TOLD what he saw and heard by the prosecution....
In the end, his “testimony” has turned out to be worthless anyway.
(By the way, Smooth, that shirt is perfect for asshats like Washburn, Murtha, Kerry....)
I’m willing to hold fire on Dela Cruz for now.
bump
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