ANN ARBOR, MI – A key expert witness for the government last week ended up being a great witness for Marine Lieutenant Colonel Chessani and the Thomas More Law Center.
William Hays Parks, a lawyer with the Department of Defense who wrote the Directive on the “Law of War” was called by the prosecution to bolster their case against LtCol Chessani, the battalion commander of the Marines charged in the Haditha case. Instead, Mr. Parks testified that when he wrote the Directive, he did not envision that battalion commanders would investigate Law of War violations. They would merely report any suspected violations up the chain of command.
Mr. Parks stated that he wanted combat commanders in the field to focus on the fight, while those higher in the chain of command decided whether to investigate. Mr. Parks believed that it would be improper for the battalion commanding officer to investigate his own men in this situation.
Attorneys with the Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm defending LtCol Chessani decided not to question Mr. Parks since his testimony essentially negated one of the charges LtCol Chessani faces—failure to investigate properly. The remaining charges have to do with reporting a possible or suspected “Law of War” charge. The Thomas More Law Center is confident they have the evidence that proves LtCol Chessani reported properly up the chain of command everything his battalion knew about the battle in Haditha on November 19, 2005.
Law Center attorney Brian Rooney stated, “We have documentary evidence that proves LtCol Chessani reported to the Regiment and Division all the facts about the battle in Haditha that day. Every officer in the entire 2nd Marine Division who had the need to know was aware that there were civilian casualties. All understood that terrorists chose the place of battle—to fight behind women and children. The enemy we face brutally calculates civilian deaths in their attacks in the hopes that Marines will unintentionally kill civilians so that they can use that as propaganda against the forces they face.”
The high-profile Haditha case arises out of a terrorist attack in Haditha, Iraq on November 19, 2005 in which one Marine was killed and several others wounded as terrorists engaged Marines from civilian-occupied homes. Several months later, the incident received negative political and media attention based on false propaganda claims by suspected insurgents, who alleged that Marines wrongfully killed civilians. As a result, the government charged Lt Col Chessani with dereliction of duty and “orders” violations for allegedly failing to investigate and report a law of war violation.
Other key witnesses that testified this past week included Major General Huck, the commanding general of the 2nd Marine Division and some staff officers in the battalion and regiment at the time of the attack. MGen Huck acknowledged that he knew that civilians were killed on the same day of the battle, but he understood this to be an “unfortunate” outcome due to the tactics of the enemy we face in Iraq.
It is clear from MGen Huck and the others that have testified that all officers in Chessani’s chain of command in the 2nd Marine Division had knowledge that civilians were tragically killed in Haditha, but as seasoned combat veterans they knew that this can regrettably occur in war when you face an enemy that specifically fights behind women and children.
Chessani’s attorneys believe that they will call at least ten more witnesses this week. One of those witnesses will be a PhD in linguistics and anthropology—concentrating on Arabic and Islamic culture and speech. This witness also happens to be a Benedictine monk.
Attorneys from the Thomas More Law Center are defending Lt Col Chessani at no cost. The defense team also includes Lieutenant Colonel Jon Shelburne, USMCR, and Captain Jeff King, USMC, who were detailed by the military.
Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More law Center commented on the case, “It is insane that we are pulling effective combat commanders off the battlefield in response to enemy propaganda, and to appease the liberal media and anti-war politicians with a scapegoat. We at the Thomas More Law Center believe that we should be honoring these brave men instead of trying to criminalize their actions to placate anti-war politicians and their anti-war friends in the press who have already announced the verdict.”
The Thomas More Law Center defends and promotes the religious freedom of Christians, time-honored family values, and the sanctity of human life through litigation, education, and related activities. It does not charge for its services. The Law Center is supported by contributions from individuals, corporations and foundations, and is recognized by the IRS as a section 501(c)(3) organization. You may reach the Thomas More Law Center at (734) 827-2001 or visit our website at www.thomasmore.org.