After last weekâ??s prosecution witnesses in the court
martial of Frank Wuterich finished up, I was ready to write that they
sounded more like prosecution witnesses testifying for the defense. It
appears that the prosecution seeing its case collapse, as it has against
the other Haditha Marines, may be ready to virtually throw in the
towel.
In the middle of a Haditha Marineâ??s testimony today, the
proceeding was halted, for the prosecution and defense to possibly
negotiate a settlement of the case. A reporter at the court martial who
for years has been a prime reliable source throughout the Haditha
prosecutions writes,
With government witnesses waiting to testify, the
military judge overseeing the proceedings at Camp Pendleton announced
Wednesday afternoon that the trial was on hold while prosecutors and
Wuterich's attorneys "explore options" and "go ahead with
negotiations."
The judge, Lt. Col. David Jones, also informed the two
sides that he was available for consultation if
needed.
The sudden disruption in the trial is a strong signal
that an agreement that would resolve the case was being discussed. A
deal would end the last major war crimes trial arising from the Iraq
war.
A source close to the case who spoke on the condition
their name not be used confirmed discussions were
ongoing.
Attorneys for Wuterich, a Murrieta father of three young
girls, declined to comment Wednesday. Prosecutors are forbidden by
Marine Corps policy from commenting.
A possible resolution could involve a guilty plea to a
minor charge in exchange for manslaughter charges being dropped and
little or no punishment.
Last week, one officer who delivered an ROE lecture in the
US before the Haditha Marines deployed to Iraq said the rules of
engagement were to positively ID whether a dangerous foe. This was
contradicted by the actual training and standard operating procedures and
by the other prosecution witnesses testifying that Frank Wuterich acted in
accord with orders, training and SOP. Further, the forensics witness
contradicted the already suspect testimony from Dela Cruz, and showed that
Dela Cruzâ?? likely killed at least two of the five Iraqis from the white
car that pulled up within seconds and near the first IED explosion, not
Wuterich, the Marines being warned of white cars used for
IEDs.
As I wrote last week about â??Understanding The Wuterich Haditha Court
Martialâ??, the lesser charge of
â??dereliction of dutyâ?? is a catch-all for negligence or culpable
ineptitude. The punishment can range from minor to severe. Another
reliable reporter who was at last weekâ??s court martial commented to me
that the reporter expected, at most, a finding of dereliction of duty with
minor punishment, at least to justify the 7-years of the â?? as it has
turned out â?? witch hunts to justify the rush to judgments in 2005 that
have one by one been found in Article 32 and court martial proceedings to
be without merit.
A settlement would have to be approved by the "convening
authority", Camp Pendleton's LtGen Thomas Waldhauser, commanding general
for the Marine Corps Forces Central Command. Waldhauser is also in charge
of the investigation into the "pissed off" Marines whose video surfaced
last week venting scorn on some dead Taliban. Waldhauser is what, I
would call, mostly a HQs general (official bio). -- The defense team is very
experienced, knowledgeable and tough, former Marines themselves. The
prosecution has been dogged and relentless. The jurors, all combat Marines
who served in Iraq, did so after Haditha, when the Marines were ordered to
be more restrained -- and more at risk -- when facing similar situations
as the Haditha, and Faloujah, Marines faced in their most dangerous
street battles. The court martial will reconvene Thursday at 1PM, Pacific
Time. Maybe we'll see then what justice is that
prevails.