Not the same guy...
http://desmoinesregister.com/news/stories/c2229999/20889381.html Tales From The Home Front
By Register News Services
04/01/2003
DAVENPORT
Marines to investigate soldiers' drownings
Two senior Marine officers will investigate the deaths of two soldiers who drowned while trying to cross a canal in southeast Iraq, a spokesman said.
Sgt. Bradley Korthaus, 28, of Davenport and Cpl. Evan James, 20, of La Harpe, Ill., died last Monday after disappearing in the Saddam Canal.
The men were part of a group of four Marines who were going to set up a defensive position to protect a water-supply area near the canal, said 1st Sgt. Michael Berg, a Marine spokesman from Peoria, Ill., where the 6th Engineer Support Battalion Company is based.
Two lieutenant colonels have been assigned to investigate, Berg said Saturday.
Korthaus" fiancee, Barbi Schneckloth, 30, of Davenport has questioned the company leader's handling of the canal crossing. She said she received a letter from Korthaus earlier saying the company's morale was suffering due to the career ambitions of its commander, Maj. Michael McCarthy.
Berg said he hasn't heard reports from the troops that morale is as poor as Schneckloth said Korthaus described.
Marilyn Korthaus of Davenport said she will let the Marines determine what happened to her son.
"We are not going to pursue anything," she said. "The Marine Corps will investigate and fix any problems."
Korthaus' funeral will be at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church at 10 a.m. Monday. Visitation will be Sunday afternoon at the church. Burial will be at the National Cemetery at the Rock Island Arsenal.
If the regimental commander was suspected of dereliction of duty, the higher commander would have appointed at least a full colonel, perhaps even a BG to conduct the investigation, not two LTCs as reported.
That's how things are done (in the Army at least, I'm sure the USMC would do the same).
Thus, I suspect the relief is for different reasons.