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New revelations!: The Case Against the Haditha Defendants is Coming Unglued
Defend Our Marines ^ | July 25, 2007 | Nathaniel R. Helms

Posted on 07/25/2007 6:09:15 PM PDT by RedRover

The prosecution’s criminal case against LCpl Stephen Tatum and six other Marines in various stages of judicial process took another nose dive today. Charges that Chessani and his officers failed to adequately investigate or report the circumstances of the ambush at Haditha to higher headquarters were blasted apart by confirmation that a U.S. Air Force RQ-1 Predator was on station above Haditha for more than five hours on November 19, 2005.

Both Chessani and higher headquarters at least at both regiment and division level were watching it do its thing on big screens, an officer revealed. The Predator’s amazing capabilities provide opportunity for anyone in the National Command Authority to watch the fight in real time if they wanted to.

“We had Scan Eagle from about 0830 until 1700. Predator joined in from about 1030-1400 or so. Scan Eagle was used to maintain continuous PID [Positive Identification] on human targets as they fled from neighborhood to neighborhood. We used Predator's IR [Infra Red] camera to identify them within the palm grove (hotspots) where they were attempting to hide and to get the bombs on target. Both were used to guide helos and fixed wing air support on to the targets,” the officer explained.

At least one type of sophisticated UAV was over the battlefield all morning. In addition to 3/1’s organic Dragon Eye and ScanEagle following bands of insurgents move from hiding place to hiding place, theater commanders in Baghdad diverted an orbiting RQ-1 Predator medium altitude, high endurance UAV to watch as well. The super-secret aircraft is launched from Balad Air Base in Iraq and controlled by remote operators at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, the Air Force says. The Predator is operated by the Air Force for the Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency, and other highly classified intelligence authorities. It allows senior commanders at the Pentagon to see what is happening in real time as well as field commanders in Iraq.

An officer who was there said so many people were watching the fight go down that a faraway Public Affairs Officer wrote 3/1 to suggest it was time to “maximize the coalition coverage of this, pointing out to the locals that insurgents don't care about their children."

Chessani is charged with violating his orders for failing to inform higher headquarters of the situation at Haditha. On November 19 every Marine Corps senior headquarters in Iraq and the United States could watch events in Haditha go down in real time and living color thanks to Predator.

In the words of one expert, “They can run but they can’t hide [from Predator].”

Another blow fell when a spokesman for United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement said that if Naval Criminal Investigative Service special agents threatened Venezuelan native LCpl Humberto Mendoza with deportation if he didn’t cooperate they were at odds with current US law. Jack Zimmermann, the Texas attorney representing Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum suggested NCIS used the ploy to gain Mendoza’s testimony during his examination of the 23-year-old Marine.

A spokesman for ICE in Washington, D.C. said that NCIS could only make such a threat if Mendoza was already convicted of a serious crime. Current immigration law mandates violators must be convicted of a crime providing for “at least one year in jail or more” before it will initiate deportation proceedings, according to Pat Reilly, the Public Affairs Officer for ICE. She noted two exceptions to the law;

1.) If Mendoza lied about his citizenship status and fraudulently enlisted in the Marine Corps;

2.) If Mendoza had already been convicted of two or more crimes.

A spokesman for the Camp Pendleton Media Center said Mendoza’s citizenship status was a question for the Public Affairs Officer for the 1st Marine Division. As of this report the 1st MarDiv PAO has not returned phone calls. Presumably, however, given Mendoza’s unfettered testimony earlier this week he remains in good standing in the Marine Corps. Otherwise the prosecution would have to reveal his tarnished status to the defense.

On December 18, 2005, three days before three Marines from his squad were charged with murder Mendoza was granted immunity from prosecution in return for his cooperation. Despite previous testimony to the contrary Mendoza went from being part of a combat stack of Marines attacking a hostile objective to a lone Marine apparently wandering around in a smoke-filled house grenades had just been thrown into, he testified.

In his post-immunity version of events, Mendoza didn’t shoot anyone except a couple of fellows who must have deserved it. When he discovered innocent civilians huddled in a room behind a closed door he backed away, shutting the door behind him. Despite the early morning gloom stipulated by both sides, he could see the darkened, smoke-filled chamber was full of terrified women and children. Tatum did all the killing, he said.

Zimmermann subsequently suggested during his examination of Mendoza that the NCIS told Mendoza his citizenship was at stake if he didn’t cooperate. If they did it was a hollow threat. It would particularly be true if the NCIS special agents knew Mendoza was neither convicted of a crime or in violation of any citizenship statutes, one Missouri county prosecutor said. In most jurisdictions the court would call that type of behavior coercion, she said.

At Haditha, Mendoza was fighting alongside Tatum, Sharratt, Sgt. Francis Wolf, the late Miguel “T.J.” Terrazas, and Joe Haman, all who paid so dearly at Fallujah the year before. Marines who know the fighting caliber of these fighting Marines find it simply incredulous that a rookie Marine rifleman who had just shot two men in a firefight would even be capable to shutting down the way Mendoza claims he was able to.

Someday the truth will be available for everybody to see for themselves. The continuous video should be 8-10 hours, and includes the entire fight, one Marine said.

“[It]… finishes with the insurgent holding a child in order to avoid getting bombed again,” he added, “before we swarmed in to capture him.”


TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: defendourmarines; haditha; iraq; marines
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To: RedRover; Girlene; P-Marlowe; jude24; Brian Rooney

The revelation of the super-secret eyes on the engagement throughout almost the entire Haditha battle with actual viewing capability up to the national command authority level is a stunning revelation. The presence of other aerial eyes for the theater commanders, requested by those higher levels, gives the entire military chain of command absolutely no place to hide from the truth of Haditha.

They were watching it. They knew exactly what was going on. They were watching real time.

Prosecuting LTC Chessani for failing to report the incident up the chain of command is a farce. As a Battalion Commander his security clearance would be such that he KNEW the aerial eyes were on the battle. One measure of the man’s fidelity is that knowing the truth he maintained classified information even when he was falsely charged.

The other truth is that charge that he monitored his entire battalion battle rather than go to SSgt Wutterich’s location and control that battle from on scene. Even Stonewall Jackson wouldn’t have done that unless it was the key location for a breakthrough. The only benefit of having a battalion commander lead a SSgt’s squad is getting the battalion commander killed. /sarc.

What an idiotic charge against Chessani that he monitored his battalion’s entire engagement. OF COURSE HE DID! That’s his flippin job!

The only way such anti-Standard Procedure charges stick is if a runaway media gets to be the sole source of informing and inflaming. The whole concept of the digital battlefield is that the commanders get real-time information about their entire battle and are able then to provide command and control based on actual knowledge of the entire battlefield. These concepts were intially tested at Ft Knox in the very early 90’s and then went to the first digital brigades in the mid to late 90’s.

You don’t WANT your battalion commander leading charges of the light brigade with one tiny squad out of one small platoon. That is the entire point of digital command and control!

This insane prosecution of this honorable man just took a serious hit. I sure hope the defense is permitted to file additional information with the deciding general as it comes out in these other hearings.


81 posted on 07/26/2007 5:23:33 AM PDT by xzins (Retired Army Chaplain And Proud of It! Those who support the troops will pray for them to WIN!)
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To: RedRover

try this one...
http://www.newshounds.us/2007/07/25/hannity_and_bozell_only_liberal_journalists_distort_the_truth.php#more


82 posted on 07/26/2007 6:07:05 AM PDT by Chickenhawk Warmonger (The Media Lied & Soldiers Died)
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To: StarCMC; freema
"...bill for ALL of their lawyers fees should be picked up by Murtha and the media."
Great idea!
83 posted on 07/26/2007 8:40:38 AM PDT by Marine_Uncle (Hunter in 2008)
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To: stylin19a; Girlene; lilycicero; jazusamo
I did have a chance to talk with Jack Zimmermann today.

He didn't seem much concerned about Mendoza's testimony. Here's a quote from the conversation: "LtCol Paul Ware conducted as fair an Article 32 as I've ever seen. And I've been practicing law since 1975."

84 posted on 07/26/2007 1:05:16 PM PDT by RedRover (DefendOurMarines.com)
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To: RedRover

Thanks, that’s very encouraging.


85 posted on 07/26/2007 1:15:04 PM PDT by jazusamo (DefendOurMarines.com)
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To: RedRover

That is upbeat news!


86 posted on 07/26/2007 1:18:10 PM PDT by lilycicero
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To: RedRover

thanks for the follow-up


87 posted on 07/26/2007 1:24:38 PM PDT by stylin19a (Don't buy a putter until you have had a chance to throw it.)
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To: RedRover

Awesome news. Thank goodness Lt. Gen. Mattis decided to appoint him as an IO for all three accused of murder. Now, I hope he never appoints Conlin, the IO for Chessani to any more hearings.


88 posted on 07/26/2007 2:13:29 PM PDT by Girlene
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To: Girlene

And don’t forget Conlin was appointed at the defense’s request for an IO with combat experience.

I can see how that could cut either way and am not sure whether that was a smart defense move or not.


89 posted on 07/26/2007 2:25:15 PM PDT by RedRover (DefendOurMarines.com)
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To: Quix

Amen.


90 posted on 07/26/2007 7:12:16 PM PDT by freema (Marine FRiend, 1stCuz2xRemoved, Mom, Aunt, Sister, Friend, Wife, Daughter, NIECE)
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To: Son House
Bush should pardon our Marines from this non-sense, and...

No, not yet. It would be best if they are found Not Guilty in military court. If that doesn't work out, and appeals are exhausted, THEN its time to take the pardon request up to the White House.

A pardon assumes guilt but grants forgiveness. I for one don't believe these men are guilty of anything.

91 posted on 07/26/2007 7:38:21 PM PDT by Ramius (Personally, I give us... one chance in three. More tea?)
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To: Ramius
A pardon assumes guilt but grants forgiveness. I for one don't believe these men are guilty of anything.

The only issue with a "not guilty" verdict is that it is costing the families money to defend their Marines. Hopefully the Defense Funds are now collecting enough funds to offset the costs of these trials.

92 posted on 07/26/2007 8:00:46 PM PDT by pinkpanther111 (Defend Our Marines)
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