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October 2007 News Update - In a report
obtained by NEWSWEEK, the affair's investigator
casts doubt on the prosecution's case www.newsweek.com/id/57349/page/1
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Marines Face General Court-Martial in a controversial firefight following an al Qaeda-led
insurgent ambush in Haditha
But months later, Time magazine quoted Iraqis
as disputing the Marines' version and suggesting that the Marines had gone on a vengeful
rampage. The military launched investigations.
Camp Pendleton, California – U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey R. Chessani
and Lance Corporal Stephen B. Tatum will face general court-martial for their roles in a
controversial firefight following an al Qaeda-led insurgent ambush in Haditha, Iraq almost
two years ago in which 24 Iraqi citizens died.
Also on trial is whether combatants caught in a no-quarter duel can be successfully
prosecuted for the life or death decisions they make in the white-hot crucible of combat.
The decision to bring the two Marines to courts-martial was made by Lieutenant General
James N. Mattis, the convening authority in the case and its final arbiter. He upheld the
recommendation of the investigating officer in Chessani’s case to charge him with
dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order. Mattis overrode the decision of the
investigating officer in Tatum’s case to dismiss all the charges – including
multiple counts of unpremeditated murder - against the veteran enlisted Marine.
Instead, Mattis referred charges against Tatum for involuntary manslaughter, reckless
endangerment and aggravated assault. He dismissed charges of murder and negligent homicide
against the survivor of the horrific “Hell House” fight at Fallujah, Iraq in
November 2004.
The general’s decision brought an immediate reaction from the defense lawyers.
“Referring this case to trial imperils every young Marine and soldier who faces a
split second decision in combat,” according to a statement from veteran Marines Jack
Zimmerman and Kyle R. Sampson, the Houston, Texas attorneys who represent Tatum.
Zimmerman, a former infantryman, was decorated for valor twice while serving in Vietnam.
Chessani, a career Marine infantryman, is the former commanding officer of 3rd Battalion,
1st Marines. Chessani is charged with dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order
for failing to accurately report and investigate the incident.
His battalion was attacked in a coordinated al Qaeda-led “complex ambush” on
November 19, 2005, the Marine Corps says. During the engagement one Marine was killed and
11 others were wounded. According to intelligence information gleaned from Iraqi
informants and captured insurgents the insurgent’s plan was to attack the battalion
in several locations simultaneously to cause maximum carnage among Iraqi civilians.
Chessani’s attorneys at the Thomas More Law Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, said they
are particularly disappointed with the decision to bring their client to trial because of
the “chilling effect” the case has on the military’s sacrosanct chain of
command.
Attorney Brian Rooney, himself a Marine combat veteran and one of the attorneys
representing Chessani said second-guessing the actions of combatants is tantamount to the
Soviet “commissar” theory of command. During the Communist era of the former
Soviet Union political officers called commissars could countermand the orders of combat
leaders in the name of political expediency.
“You might as well have a political officer in every battalion to make sure every
order is politically correct,” Rooney said.
Both Marines had been in combat in Iraq in al Anbar Province during two deployments when
the Haditha incident occurred. The incident began when a squad from Kilo Company, 3/1 was
ambushed November 19, 2005 on a road at the outskirts of Haditha. In the ensuing day-long
fight 24 Iraqi citizens were killed in the cross-fire between insurgents and
counter-attacking Marines.
Three months later the attack was brought to light in a series of inaccurate and highly
inflammatory reports initiated by a March 6, 2006 article in Time Magazine by reporter Tim
McGirk. His report and those that followed claimed the Marines had killed the Iraqis in
cold-blood in retaliation for the death of Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas.
The story was
picked up by Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha, who went on international television to
claim the Marines had killed the Iraqis for revenge.
The furor generated by the reports and Murtha’s outlandish rhetoric sparked two
separate investigations of the battalion’s actions. Last December those
investigations resulted in the charging of eight Marines with murder, assault, and
dereliction of duty for allegedly covering up the crimes. Subsequently four of those
Marines were exonerated.
During the summer-long Article 32 investigatory hearings at Camp Pendleton the hearing
officers charged with looking into the matter determined no murders had been committed.
So far Chessani and Tatum are the only 3/1 Marine ordered to courts-martial in the
incident. Two other Marines, including Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich, the squad leader of
the ambushed squad, still face the possibility of general court-martial.
Wuterich is waiting to discover whether he will be charged with 17 counts of
unpremeditated murder and uttering a false statement. Lt. Col. Paul Ware, the
investigating officer in his case, recommended that the murder charges be reduced to seven
counts of negligent homicide. Mattis can accept the investigating officer’s
recommendations, ignore them, or charge him with other offenses.
One source close to the investigation said Friday afternoon that Wuterich is expected to
learn his fate sometime next week. In addition, a junior officer, Lieutenant Andrew
Grayson, must still undergo ab Article 32 investigation to determine whether there is
enough evidence to bring him to trial for dereliction of duty.
Despite Mattis’ decision to bring the two Marines to trial their lawyers remain
confident they will be exonerated.
“We are very disappointed that the Commanding General did not follow the
recommendation to withdraw and dismiss all charges made by the experienced trial judge who
heard all the evidence during the Article 32 Investigation,” Tatum’s attorneys
said. “However, Lance Corporal Tatum did not commit any crime, and we will take the
fight to the courtroom. We will vigorously challenge the government's case, and nothing
will be left undone in defense of this fine young Marine.
“We remain convinced that the military justice system eventually will reach the right
result,” they concluded.
Rooney offered similar sentiments.
“We expect that Lieutenant Colonel Chessani will be fully exonerated when this goes
to trial. While we are disappointed with the decision we look forward to going to
court-martial to show that no stone was left unturned and nothing was swept under the rug
in an effort to discover the truth of what happened at Haditha,” Rooney said.
Nathaniel R. Helms
Defend Our Marines
19 October 2007
Note: Nat Helms is a Contributing Editor to Defend Our Marines. He is a Vietnam veteran,
former police officer, war correspondent, and, most recently, author of My Men Are My
Heroes: The Brad Kasal Story (Meredith Books, 2007).
© Nathaniel R. Helms 2007
Go to the Defend Our Marines main page
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Lieutenant Colonel
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