ANN ARBOR, MI – Six officers and one senior enlisted Marine gave sworn videotaped testimony last week that nothing they saw or heard concerning the so called “Haditha Massacre” of November 19, 2005 caused them to suspect that any Marine had purposely killed any Iraqi civilian or that any officer was involved in a cover-up of the incident.
The Thomas More Law Center is representing Marine Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Chessani, who is charged with failure to investigate and brief higher command of the incident. The defense team also includes Marine Reserve Lieutenant Colonel Jon Shelburne—a law professor at Roger Williams University School of Law, and Marine Captain Jeff King. The sworn videotape testimony for use at the proposed May 2007 Article 32 hearing was taken because the witnesses were being deployed out of the country and would not be personally present at the hearing.
The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan is defending Chessani at no cost. Law Center attorneys assigned to handle the case, Robert Muise and Brian Rooney, are both former Marine officers. Rooney served seven months in Iraq and Muise served in the first Persian Gulf War.
Brian Rooney, the Law Center spokesperson, commented, “The more evidence that is brought to light from key witnesses the better. There is so much misreporting and outright propaganda from the enemy presented as fact by news organizations like Time magazine that we have started in on the process of debunking false reports through the truth with these depositions.”
One key witness was the intelligence officer for 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines while the unit was deployed to Iraq. During his closed testimony, the officer testified for nearly eight hours, providing classified evidence of the enemy situation and their tactics, including their tactic of using civilians as cover for their attacks. Through this witness, the defense team presented over one hundred classified exhibits, including video.
Muise, the Law Center attorney who questioned the officer, commented, “The intelligence officer is a crucial witness in this case. During his testimony, he effectively described the enemy situation prior to, during, and after the November 19 terrorist attack, providing the necessary context for the decisions that were made as a result. His testimony shows the complexity of the attack this day, the callousness of the terrorists toward the local civilians, whom they use to their advantage, and the error of viewing this incident in a vacuum.”
The officer also showed how the insurgents used allegations of wrongdoing by Marines as propaganda to support their cause. In fact, another witness, who was the assistant intelligence officer during the attack and is now the current intelligence officer for the battalion, testified that since the Haditha incident received so much negative attention, terrorist propaganda alleging law of war violations against American servicemen in Iraq has “ballooned.”
Richard Thompson, the President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, expressed concern about this trend, “The government’s politicized quest to find wrongdoing in this case will ultimately harm the war effort, and it has already resulted in an incredible expenditure of time, money, and scarce resources, which could be better used fighting the terrorists.”
Another officer who personally witnessed the scene of the attack shortly after the fighting and assisted with removing the civilian bodies from the insurgent-occupied homes, confirmed that there was no evidence of “executions” and that he saw no evidence of misconduct. This officer was testifying under a grant of immunity by the government, adding further credibility to his testimony.
Lieutenant Colonel Shelburne, the military defense counsel who questioned this officer, noted, “This officer’s testimony is significant. He was on the scene shortly after the attack. He saw the location of the bodies. He personally observed the damage caused by the attack. And yet, he saw nothing that caused him to suspect any wrongdoing on the part of the Marines. Moreover, this officer was given immunity by the government, so the only way he can get in trouble is if he testifies untruthfully.”
Another key point shown by witness testimony was that there was absolutely no evidence of a “cover up.” The Marines promptly reported the attack, including the fact that civilians had been killed, up the chain of command. In fact, a briefing was given to a high-ranking general officer just days after the terrorist attack, informing the general of the civilian deaths. And the witnesses uniformly recounted being instructed by senior officers in the battalion, including Lieutenant Colonel Chessani, to tell the truth when questioned about the incident—the battalion had nothing to hide. As one witness told the attorneys, the notion that there was any sort of a cover up is “ridiculous.”
Said Thompson, “Our job is to allow the facts of November 19, 2005 and beyond to be presented to the investigating officer rather than the scurrilous and unfounded accusations from anti-war politicians and media who rely on insurgent sources for their stories about our decent and hard fighting men in uniform.”
The maximum punishment at a General Court-Martial that Lieutenant Colonel Chessani could face is dismissal (an officer’s equivalent of a dishonorable discharge), loss of retirement, and imprisonment of up to 3 years.
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.