But the quotes from Maliki in the article below have always bothered me more than any other. I believe it gives a glimpse into why the likes of Col Ewers were so eager to see convictions to help our long-term strategy in Iraq...
Posted on 06/17/2008 9:50:16 AM PDT by jazusamo
CAMP PENDLETON ---- A military judge has dismissed charges against a Marine officer accused of failing to investigate the killings of 24 Iraqis.
Col. Steven Folsom dismissed charges Tuesday against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani after defense attorneys raised concerns that a four-star general overseeing the prosecution was improperly influenced by an investigator probing the November 2005 shootings by a Marine squad in Haditha.
The charges were dismissed without prejudice, meaning they can be refiled, but Folsom excluded Marine Forces Central Command from future involvement.
Chessani was the highest-ranking officer implicated in the case.
CAMP PENDLETON ---- In a stinging rebuke of the government's handling of a high-profile war crime case, a military judge Tuesday dismissed dereliction of duty charges against the commander of a Marine squad that killed 24 civilians in the Iraqi city of Haditha.
The dismissal of charges against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani came after a finding that then-Lt. Gen. James Mattis was unlawfully influenced by a Marine attorney who participated in an investigation of the killings and then became the general's top legal adviser.
The ruling by Col. Steven Folsom, the judge presiding over Chessani's case, was a major blow to the government, which has seen charges against seven of the eight men accused with criminal wrongdoing in the 2005 killings dismissed or withdrawn. Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich is for now the lone Haditha defendant.
Folsom ruled the participation of Col. John Ewers as an investigator and report writer in the Haditha killings and his later appointment as Mattis' top legal aide constituted unlawful command influence.
Ewers' depth of involvement, he said, "tainted" the charges against Chessani beyond repair.
"Unlawful command influence is the mortal enemy of military justice," Folsom said. "The appearance of unlawful command influence is as devastating as actual manipulation of a trial."
A dismissal, he said, was necessary to maintain public confidence in the military justice system.
Prosecutors were given three days to appeal. If they choose not to but want to continue the prosecution, Folsom said, a new investigation must be conducted. Approval of any new charges must come from a senior Marine officer who has had no association with the case, Folsom said.
Chessani, who remained stoic throughout the hearings, showed no reaction when the decision was announced at the end of an hour-long session inside a small base courtroom.
The highest-ranking man charged in the Haditha killings had been scheduled to go on trial by court-martial on July 16.
Signs of frustration
The lead prosecutor in the case, Lt. Col. Sean Sullivan, displayed visible frustration as Folsom explained why he was dismissing the two counts of dereliction of duty.
When Folsom finished, Sullivan immediately asked him to reconsider. Folsom declined, and moments later heatedly told the prosecutor he had 72 hours to decide whether to appeal the ruling; he then abruptly ended the hearing.
Mattis was commander of Marine Corps forces in the Middle East when it came time to decide if charges would be filed in the Haditha incident. His duties included presiding as the "convening authority" over the prosecution.
Mattis has since been promoted to four-star general and now works as a North American Treaty Organization commander and head of the military's Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Va.
In a dramatic hearing last month, Mattis testified that he was not influenced by Ewers when he approved charging Chessani and seven other Marines with wrongdoing.
"I make my own decisions," the highly regarded general testified on June 2.
But Folsom said Ewers had taken part in dozens of meetings regarding Haditha. Knowing that Ewers also was a witness, the judge said Mattis erred in allowing his participation.
"He was clearly a disqualified legal adviser," Folsom said of Ewers.
The Joint Forces Command issued a prepared statement shortly after Folsom's ruling: "General Mattis said under oath that he did not speak to the officer about the case and was not influenced by him. He stands by his statement under oath."
Cautiously optimistic
After Tuesday's hearing, Chessani and his wife, Alissa, the parents of six young children, declined comment.
"We're cautiously optimistic the government won't refile the charges," said one of his attorneys, Brian Rooney. "We hope that it's over. It should be over. We believe it never should have got this far."
Chessani commanded Camp Pendleton's 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment at Haditha.
Nineteen civilians were shot by a squad from the regiment's Kilo Company as it searched houses for those responsible for a roadside bombing and subsequent small arms fire the morning of Nov. 19, 2005.
Five men who emerged from a car that drove up immediately after the bombing that killed a lance corporal also were shot.
Eight Marines were charged with wrongdoing in the case, which generated outcries on Capitol Hill and around the world when it came to light.
Four enlisted men originally were charged with murder while Chessani and three other officers faced charges related to failing to order a full-scale probe.
Chessani, 44, still faces the specter of jail time and a dismissal from the service with a loss of benefits if prosecutors refile the case and he is convicted and sentenced to the maximum.
If the Marine Corps opts not to pursue new charges, the Colorado native, who has been in the service for more than 20 years, intends to retire, Rooney said.
The accusations
Prosecutors contend Chessani failed to live up to his responsibilities, particularly when he learned that women and children were among the dead at Haditha.
Sullivan repeatedly pointed out in earlier hearings that the mayor of Haditha and its town council issued a demand for an official investigation within days of the slayings.
Staff Sgt. Wuterich led the squad that killed the Iraqis and shot the men who emerged from the car. Wuterich was first charged with multiple counts of murder.
After an investigative hearing last year, those charges were reduced to nine counts of voluntary manslaughter.
Wuterich's attorney, Neal Puckett, said Folsom's ruling has substantial implications for his client because Ewers also investigated Wuterich before becoming Mattis' legal adviser.
A request to drop the charges against Wuterich on the basis of unlawful command influence is coming, Puckett said.
Scott Silliman, a Duke University law professor and director of the Center on Law, Ethics and National Security, said he believes the Marine Corps will seek new charges against Chessani.
"The ruling has no direct bearing on the guilt or innocence of the accused, so I have to assume the government will refile," he said.
Whether justice has been served in the Haditha prosecutions depends on the outcome of Wuterich's case, Silliman said, adding he believes the case continues to be closely watched in Iraq.
"He is the principal actor in this, and before you can make a determination that justice was done, we need to see the final outcome," he said.
That wasn’t a ping list. I do have a ping list, however, and will remove you.
That wasn’t a ping list. I do have a ping list, however, and will remove you. (Correction-you weren’t on it.)
I’m afraid I could get charged with dereliction for cryin’ like a baby and by golly I’m seein’ some office hours in my future : )
WOW! Awesome update at North County Times.
Whatever. Just don’t ping me, please.
Good update but I really don’t have the concern that Silliman does that the case is being closely watched in Iraq. It might be different if Iraq had a superior judicial system but last time I looked we do.
He is a Democrat.
With that being known, whose side is he on should be in the answer.
He is on the side of those who wish to destroy the United States.
I don't doubt Gen. Mattis believes that to be true.
The point remains that the appearance of UCI attaches just by Ewers being present at multiple meetings, probably with many of the same participants. As someone (xzins ? Lancey ?) said, even if Ewers just sat in mute, he was introduced and likely his position in the investigation stated, at every meeting. Anyone in those meetings needing any additional information thereafter would have been led to believe that he was the point man to approach for details or problems, or for a better understanding of the prosecution's developed story.
Sad as it is, he's correct. The taint of wrongdoing will not be cleansed by this, more like the majority will believe he got away with something because of legal trickery and shenanigans. I doubt the DoD will refile, as there is no way to redo a new investigation. Any use of current briefs are all tainted by the UCI determination. If SSgt. Wunterich's case is also decided in his favour based on this same UCI, then neither he nor Chessani are really cleared or absolved of the charges.
It also sounds as if Folsom was highly miffed at prosecutor Sullivan's less-than-honourable conduct, I would guess Sullivan's next Fitness Report will be other than satisfactory. In light of this, and the insistance of the prosecutions intent to push the Wunterich/60 Minutes demands to the USSC, maybe Gates should take the opportunity to clear the decks and get back to the real business of fighting the insurgents instead of our troops.
I couldn't agree more.
Good post, brit.
But the quotes from Maliki in the article below have always bothered me more than any other. I believe it gives a glimpse into why the likes of Col Ewers were so eager to see convictions to help our long-term strategy in Iraq...
Whoops....we were on the same page with this one. Good post, brit.
From his "close" ties to the PA Republican party chairman, to various contracts awarded, to his little scam deal with his cohort Kanjorski and his kids, to the sweet deal he got for Pelousy's nephew, to his connections through staffers up to SoN Winter. I'm still of the opinion that he was involved with the UCI in some way.
Why would anyone want to? :-(
Absolutely, but then again this should have happened long ago.
How was that possible without knowing the ruling in advance? Hmmm...
>> He should do a whole show like Hannity did with Justin and Darryl.
Yes. ‘Haditha’ is a tragic and complicated story.
I remember first hearing about the horrific allegations. I had no reason to dismiss the casualties, but the context of depraved brutality didn’t make any sense. For those who hate America, the simplistic dark fallacy is easy to grab on to. But the details tell a different story, and the facts of the day need to be published.
Today was a day where ‘Haditha’ did not descend into greater tragedy. Thank God.
Yeah, Red. Their idea of justice is a wee bit different than ours on this case, your post spells it out beautifully.
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