Marine Released from Civilian Custody after Refusing to Testify Against Fellow Marine

newsmax.com ^ | May 30, 2008 | Nat Helms

[kellynla]

A Marine sergeant accused of murdering an Iraqi insurgent at Fallujah more then three years ago was returned to Marine Corps control Thursday after spending a week in a Los Angeles civilian jail on federal contempt charges.

US District Judge Percy Anderson ordered Sergeant Jermaine Nelson released from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles a week after ordering him confined for refusing to testify against his former squad leader in a related federal murder investigation, his lawyer Joseph Low said.

Nelson is charged by the Marine Corps with unpremeditated murder and dereliction of duty for allegedly shooting an Iraqi insurgent prisoner in the opening hours of the month-long battle in November, 2004. Nelson is currently stationed at Camp Pendleton.

Before obtaining legal counsel last year, Nelson confessed to shooting one of the prisoners and witnessing the deaths of three others. He claimed that his former squad leader Sgt. Jose L Nazario ordered him and another Marine to help execute four captured insurgents.

Nazario says the event never happened.

Government prosecutors granted Nelson testimonial immunity last month and ordered him to testify before the federal Grand Jury looking into the case. He refused and was locked up for contempt, his lawyer Joseph Low said at the time.

[Eagles6]

"No body, no crime scene, no evidence, no crime!"

So one would think.

[4woodenboats]

Knowing that his “confession” was about to be exposed as a fraud he refused to repeat what he had said even with immunity since such immunity does not cover perjury... You don't suppose NCIS has whispered in Nelson's ear that bad things might happen to him if he tells "the rest of the story" about how their - er, his story came to be?

It's pure speculation of course, but since the evidence in every single one of these witch hunts have been based on statements taken from the weakest links under massive duress from multiple wild charges, interrogation techniques that would make the NYTimes if it had been a Gitmo prisoner and with no legal representation, I don't see them changing what works for them so well..(or so they thought).

[Marine_Uncle]

Perhaps some element of justice leaking out of the local courts? Or where they told they simply had no business retaining the Marine and realized it was time to let him go.

[Marine_Uncle]

Perhaps some element of justice leaking out of the local courts? Or where they told they simply had no business retaining the Marine and realized it was time to let him go.