The Death of the Marine Corps, Chapter 3

Denial of Honor

Eight men stand charged in the death of an insurgent in Hamdaniya, Iraq. His family claims he was a harmless old, disabled man who refused to become an informant for the Americans. Considering the lack of value placed on truth in Iraqi culture, and the fact that the family stood to gain $2500 in American dollars if they claimed their relative was a noncombatant, a logical person would have a hard time believing the disjointed, conflicting statements by various members of the family. More shocking than even the accusations themselves is the way in which this case has been handled by the Marine Corps. The timeline of events points to something even more insidious than a cover-up; it shows a blatant disregard for the lives of eight men who voluntarily gave of themselves for their country, and a willingness to allow the anti-American Left to dictate how we fight the war in Iraq, even at the expense of the troops they so vehemently claim to support.

What does it mean to say that the Marine Corps has mishandled this case? Judge for yourself if this adheres to the Constitutional protections afforded a suspect in a crime.

• These proud Marines and corpsman were taken from a combat situation and questioned for hours in Iraq–in at least one case, seven hours–without food, water, or even a bathroom break.

• Marines returning home from redeployment must go through a COSC Redeployment Checklist that attempts to prepare them for “re-entry” into the life they left behind. They are given a Marine Redeployment and Reunion Guide that helps to explain some of the changes that may have occurred in their absence, and offers resources for coping with some of what can affect them emotionally when they return. These men were taken straight from combat into interrogation with no transition, no resources, nothing.

• They were told that they could ask for a lawyer, but that it “would be the biggest mistake of their lives.”

• The interrogations were not recorded in any way.

• They were shipped home and immediately incarcerated in solitary confinement, complete with connected leg and wrist shackles that a guard held when they went anywhere. They were not allowed a pen or paper, or even a toothbrush. Keep in mind that at this point, they had not been charged with any crime. Their shackles were recently removed, and they are now allowed to eat their meals with the other Marines. They also received access to a toothbrush, weeks after being initially confined.

• The Marine Corps claims that the shackles were consistent with pre-trial confinement, but there are no other cases where the accused are confined in this manner. In fact, the Marines that were involved in the Haditha incident, trumpeted by the media as the new My Lai, are not confined at all. One of them just received a promotion.

• The Corps has assigned each man two military attorneys; however, none of them have been able to do any work on the case. For three weeks the defense was completely stalled since all requests had to go through military defense counsel and the defense counsel were not available. One was moving to California from North Carolina, one was coming off reserve status, and some of them were already working 30 other cases.

Most people would be incensed by now. The above would never be accepted in a civilian court. Cases have been thrown out for much less.

But it gets worse. Much, much worse.

• The Marine Corps has denied the defense request that they be allowed to go to Iraq and interview potential witnesses and other involved parties. The prosecution claims that after the Article 32, they will decide whether a trip to Iraq is warranted, and may or may not allow the defense to go. This means that the defense will not be allowed to view the alleged crime scene; they will also not be able to talk to anyone that the NCIS may have overlooked.

• The defense has not been given access to the body to have an autopsy performed. The preliminary report showed that there was no evidence of a permanent disability or that the man was even bound by his hands and feet as the prosecution claims, but the prosecution has refused to give the defense the alleged full autopsy report–and it is not even certain that there is a full autopsy in existence. The body was brought to Dover AFB for a full postmortem, and then shipped back to Iraq and reburied without the defense being allowed near it. Something else that is noteworthy here is that one of those “anonymous officials” leaked that “Forensic investigators are ‘going to fast track’ their analysis in an effort to wrap up the case…” Apparently “fast-tracking” means not giving these eight men a fair trial.

• The prosecution has denied the defense’s request for all supporting evidence: the alleged full autopsy, forensic evidence, trajectory reports, and ballistic report. They claim that the evidence is “not complete.” If the evidence isn’t complete, wasn’t it premature to hold these men in shackles for three weeks before charging them? And how can you charge 8 men with murder without a complete autopsy and forensic evidence reports?

• Not only can the defense team not go to Iraq to talk to witnesses, there is “no assurance” that these accusers are going to be present at the Article 32–or the trial itself. Marine Corps Spokesman Sean Gibson says, “There is no mechanism in place to compel them to testify.”

This means that eight Americans could very easily be convicted of murder and be executed without ever facing their accusers, which is a basic right afforded to them under the Constitution.

Are you angry yet? You should be. The Marine Corps is blatantly violating nearly every right these men have in their rush to appease the bloodthirsty Left.

Perhaps most disgusting is their recent spending for a media center that will allow for a large number of journalists sharks to come watch their show trial. They can afford that, and yet can’t seem to free up military attorneys or resources to ensure their own men get a fair trial.

An interesting side note here is that not one human rights group has contacted any of the families. Neither has the ACLU. Apparently rights only apply to illegal immigrants, terrorists, and pedophiles.

This case is beyond a travesty, and many of us are left wondering what we can do to help. There is a great deal we can do, and in my final chapter I’ll give you some ideas.

These men don’t owe us anything. They don’t owe us an explanation or an apology. We don’t “need an investigation.” We owe them–a debt we will never in all our lives be willing to pay back. The least we can do is stand up for them now. If we don’t, there is no telling how far the slope will go.

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