Blogger Exclusive: First Interview With Ilario Pantano
June 11, 2006
2 Lt. Ilario Pantano
One year after all charges being dropped against him, Ilario Pantano has released his book entitled Warlord : No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy. It’s been a long time coming, but Pantano’s book has the potential to become one of the definitive memoirs about the Iraq War. One would think that with the large amount of publicity and even fame that Pantano has seen over the last year, that you’d see his face on CNN or FOX—and you will, starting Monday morning. However, Ilario is a man of his word, and so he has made good on a long-standing promise: to give Euphoric Reality the first in-depth interview about his story, which made the Top 10 news stories of 2005 in Wilmington, North Carolina…and across the country.
We were able to chat with Ilario for about two hours on Friday night, and he spoke very candidly about his ordeal a year ago. I’ve edited this interview for brevity and clarity; Ilario has a lot to say, and he’s had a long time to reflect on his story and the ramifications it has included, not just for his family but for the Marine Corps and even the war as a whole.
I say yes.”
The finished interview is about 30 minutes long, and you can use the player below. I apologize for any blips or static in recording: this was a phone interview done with three people in three different locations throughout the country. I realize the interview is long, but I hope that you take the time to listen to the whole thing. I can tell you that the two hours spent talking to him was amazing. He is insightful, brilliant, entertaining, and no-holds-barred.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of our conversation was hearing that not only does he hold no ill will toward the Marine Corps, but that he still loves his Corps and embraces its ideals. He believes the system worked, and though it took him and his family on a journey through some dark times, ultimately it delivered justice and exonerated an innocent man.
God bless Ilario and his family. People like him give me renewed faith in our nation and in the caliber of men and women defending our freedom.
We asked him the golden question that seems to be the topic du jour here on related Pantano articles: Do you have any regrets about that day?
You asked if I had regrets and I want to answer you directly. There are many things about war that I regret. War is the darkest hour of humanity, but if you ask me if I would do what I did again, I say yes.
———————
Warlord : No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy is out in stores. Grab a copy! We’ll be reviewing this book in detail over the next few weeks and we’d love to have you join the discussion.
You may also browse our extensive coverage of Pantano’s case here.
Coming Monday: World Exclusive Interview with Ilario Pantano
June 8, 2006
We apologize for the light news day, but we’re preparing for something fantastic! We will be speaking with Ilario Pantano tonight in his first interview since his Article 32 hearing one year ago. This will be a completely exclusive interview, before FOX, before CNN, before anyone. You will hear it all here first–just like you’ve been able to do all the way through Pantano’s case last year.
We know there are a lot of questions you’d like answered…we’ve been hearing them for a long time. If you have something you’d like us to ask him specifically, let us know ASAP and we’ll try to get it worked in. Right now we’re compiling questions that we think y’all want answered. We’ll also be talking to him about Haditha, Zarqawi, and what cases like his mean to the future of the military and the war in Iraq.
You will NOT want to miss this interview! We’ll be posting the full audio on Monday. For those with slow internet connections, I’ve decided to put it out in segments so folks can download it without it timing out or taking all day.
It’s been a long time coming, folks, but it’s going to be a great conversation. Heidi and I are extremely excited at the chance to finally bring you this interview, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoy doing it.
Make sure to tune in on Monday!
WARLORD: Ilario Pantano’s Book Release
June 7, 2006
Good news, everyone! Pantano’s book is now available!
This is a must-read for June, y’all.
A few reviews:
“Pantano’s story is a tough, gritty, no-holds-barred saga of war by one who knows what it’s like to be caught in a crossfire.”
– Oliver L. North Host of War Stories on Fox News Channel“Demonstrate to the world there is ‘No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy’ than a U.S. Marine.”
– J. N. Mattis, Major General, U.S. Marines Commanding General’s Message to All Hands, March 2003
“Every tenth page of Warlord should be stamped ‘this is not a work of fiction.’ Some men run from a fight, some hold their own; Ilario is the rare hero that runs to a fight. He is one tough mother!”
– James Carville New York Times bestselling author, political strategist, and former U.S. Marine
Here’s a secret: WE’RE IN IT! Yup. Kit and I, and ‘lil ole Euphoric Reality, are IN THE BOOK. You gotta read it to believe it. :D
Do right by Pantano, and buy his book - and let us know what you think, too!
Pantano Takes On Murtha
May 29, 2006
Excellent and succinct editorial from one of our favorite Marines, Ilario Pantano, about Jack Murtha’s rush to condemn the Marines in Haditha:
A year ago I was charged with two counts of premeditated murder and with other war crimes related to my service in Iraq. My wife and mother sat in a Camp Lejeune courtroom for five days while prosecutors painted me as a monster; then autopsy evidence blew their case out of the water, and the Marine Corps dropped all charges against me ["Marine Officer Cleared in Killing of Two Iraqis," news story, May 27, 2005].
So I know something about rushing to judgment, which is why I am so disturbed by the remarks of Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.) regarding the Haditha incident ["Death Toll Rises in Haditha Attack, GOP Leader Says," news story, May 20]. Mr. Murtha said, “Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them, and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood.”
In the United States, we have a civil and military court system that relies on an investigatory and judicial process to make determinations based on evidence. The system is not served by such grand pronouncements of horror and guilt without the accuser even having read the investigative report.
Mr. Murtha’s position is particularly suspect when he is quoted by news services as saying that the strain of deployment “has caused them [the Marines] to crack in situations like this.” Not only is he certain of the Marines’ guilt but he claims to know the cause, which he conveniently attributes to a policy he opposes.
Members of the U.S. military serving in Iraq need more than Mr. Murtha’s pseudo-sympathy. They need leaders to stand with them even in the hardest of times. Let the courts decide if these Marines are guilty. They haven’t even been charged with a crime yet, so it is premature to presume their guilt — unless that presumption is tied to a political motive.
ILARIO PANTANO
Jacksonville, N.C.
Spoken like a Marine who knows the true meaning of brotherhood, and who hasn’t forgotten the meaning of fairness, despite what he has endured. Murtha should take notes.
Me Sane, You Jane.
February 20, 2006
A year ago this month, Euphoric Reality started covering the Ilario Pantano case. We were the best site for insider info at the time, and so we picked up a lot of trolls. The best one, however, was Jane Howard. Jane claimed that Pantano was guilty, and offered as proof the fact that her son was in Officer Candidate School with Pantano. Her son, according to Jane, thought Pantano was “pompous and [he] had rated him in his bottom three of most qualified officers in his class…”
We found out who her son was, and why he was full of it. Her son, as you may remember, is Lt. Graham Hopkins, who did in fact attend OCS in Pantano’s class. Pantano graduated fifth in that class, and Hopkins graduated at #175, with a leadership score that was at the absolute bottom of his 192-person class. Hopkins was also the only officer to rate Pantano poorly in peer evaluations but did so anonymously, not wishing to stand behind his rating. Pantano, however, openly criticized Hopkins, and stated in his signed evaluation that Hopkins was “Lethargic. Uncommitted. Sloppy. Seemingly allergic to training.” The bottom line is, Hopkins and Howard embarked on a course that was determined to destroy Pantano and hide the fact that Hopkins was a less-than-stellar officer. In the process, Jane spent many hours insulting me personally, my husband, Pantano, and pretty much anyone who actually proved her wrong, which wasn’t hard to do. Once we actually broke the story of who her son was, she was livid, screaming that we had “outed” him. I always thought “outing” someone generally referred to their sexual orientation. We would never stoop to making a claim on that subject, although we do think Hopkins to be a weenie (although for totally different reasons).
So why is this important a year later? Out of the blue, I just received this email from Jane Howard, who apparently tends to hold a grudge.
BLOGGER EXCLUSIVE: Pantano Book Out in June ‘06
November 8, 2005
The book we’ve all been waiting for, right? I was provided with this exclusive tidbit today. Marine officer 2LT Ilario Pantano has written a book about the ordeal he went through earlier this year when he was charged with murder after shooting two insurgents in a combat zone. He was exonerated, of course, due in part to information published on this blog, but mainly due to the fact that he was completely innocent of the charges in the first place. As it’s been all along, Euphoric Reality is the best place on the internet to go for updates on the Ilario Pantano story.
New York, NY November 8, 2005 —
In June 2006 Simon & Schuster’s new imprint Threshold Editions will publish WARLORD: No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy by former Marine Second Lieutenant Ilario Pantano and Malcolm McConnell in hardcover. WARLORD is the extraordinary memoir of Ilario Pantano, the Marine officer accused — and ultimately exonerated — of the murder of two Iraqi insurgents.
The book was acquired by Pocket Books publisher and Executive Vice President Louise Burke and Threshold Editions Editor in Chief Mary Matalin in a deal negotiated by Mel Berger of The William Morris Agency. Threshold Editions maintains United States, Canadian, and open market rights.
Ilario Pantano lived an unconventional version of the American dream and survived an even more bizarre American nightmare. Growing up in a tough neighborhood in New York City, he was an extremely bright kid; even though his parents could barely make ends meet they enrolled him at the elite Horace Mann High School. Upon graduation, his preppy classmates were shocked when he enlisted in the Marines. After fighting in the Persian Gulf War, he returned to New York, and enjoyed success as a Wall Street trader, and then later a TV producer. After witnessing the Twin Towers fall on September 11, 2001, he raced to a barbershop and traded his shoulder length hair for a Marine buzz cut. He re-enlisted at age thirty-one, tearfully kissed his pregnant wife and son goodbye and was leading a platoon of Marines in Iraq as the insurgency exploded.
A few moments on April 15, 2004 would change his life forever; on a raid in the Sunni hotbed of the Al Anbar province, Lieutenant Ilario Pantano shot and killed two insurgents. Months later, while successfully leading Marines during an explosive surge in terrorist activity, including the battles for Fallujah, one of his own men disputed Pantano’s self defense claim in the Al Anbar shootings. Pantano was relieved of his command and charged with premeditated murder–a crime punishable by death. After a widely publicized military hearing and a nation-wide Defend-the-Defenders campaign led by his mother, Pantano was cleared of all charges. Now for the first time in his own words, Pantano recounts his powerful story to protect his men, preserve his honor and keep faith in cause and country.
“Lieutenant Ilario Pantano represents the best of America. His extraordinary Marine’s story is a resounding semper fi to courage, conviction, valor, and American values,†said Mary Matalin, Editor in Chief of Threshold Editions.
“My story is about the love of being a father and a son, both to my own flesh and to America’s sons that were entrusted to me. It’s a story about a love so strong that you would give your own life or use whatever brutality is required to protect it,†said Ilario Pantano.
Pantano’s unit, 2nd Battalion 2nd Marines, The Warlords, are once again in the fight on their third combat deployment to Iraq.
Malcolm McConnell is the acclaimed bestselling co-author of My Year in Iraq with L. Paul Bremer and American Soldier with Tommy Franks. He lives in Maryland.
The mission of Threshold Editions is not only to publish but to impact the great political, policy, and philosophical debates of our time by providing a forum for the thinkers and doers across the ever-expanding contemporary conservative spectrum.
Heidi and I have known this was coming for a while now, and I’m glad we can finally talk about it. ;) I’m excited to see the book, and of course it will be reviewed on this site as soon as we can get an advance copy.
The Tragedy of the United States Marine Corps
June 3, 2005
Let me go on record as saying that I love the Marine Corps. As a Marine’s wife and an Air Force veteran, I can tell you that while the Air Force gets treated better, the fact remains that the Marines have always, and will always, have the best uniforms; the best traditions, the best stories. It’s just how it is.
Even now, I look around my home and realize that in a way, it is a shrine to the Marine Corps: Their emblem somehow magically ends up appearing on everything I own sooner or later; including my refrigerator, my computer, and my car (which, to be honest, sports three Marine stickers, a DefendtheDefenders sticker, and one Air Force emblem so I don’t feel left out). My husband’s “Glory Wall” has taken over most of the house, and everywhere I look is a plaque, a certificate, a reminder of what he is and always will be. I take pride in that. My seven-year-old son, when asked what his dad is, will tell you proudly that “He’s a Marine and a ninja!” It is a culture in and of itself, this warrior tradition that the Marines embrace and embody.
That being said, all the tradition and honor and uniforms in the world cannot make up for what in my opinion is the biggest mistake they’ve made in years: the Ilario Pantano mess.
Blogger Exclusive: Pantano Resigns
June 3, 2005
After a year-long ordeal began by a disgruntled, third-rate sergeant, one of the finest officers in the Marines has resigned his commission.
2Lt Ilario Pantano submitted his letter of resignation on Wednesday, and is announcing it today at a fish fry in Wilmington, given to honor the volunteers of the American Legion and Congressman Walter Jones for their support during his case.
Ilario emailed me this statement to pass on to you:
The support of your network has been tremendous and I hope you can help me express how much I still love the Corps to your vast readership. Leading Marines in battle has been the pinnacle of my professional life. There are so many things about being a Marine that I will miss now that I have submitted my resignation, but my priority must be taking care of my family after what can only be described as ‘one hell of a year’.
Molon Labe
Ilario Pantano
Here are his remarks from the event, directed at Congressman Walter Jones, who supported Pantano faithfully throughout the investigation and Article 32 proceedings:
Congressman Jones, You once shared a verse with me:
Greater love hath no man - than to lay down his life for his friends.
That spirit of sacrifice defines the soldier and Marine. And it defines you sir. You know in your heart and your soul what is right and you are willing to fight for it. Even if it is at great risk to you and your career.
As my family and I faced our darkest hours you fought for us, and in doing so…You fought for every man and woman in the uniform, past present and future - not because of the opportunity to challenge the military, but for the opportunity to protect it from itself.
Day and night you appealed to any that would listen. You were tireless in your defense of me, and for that I will be eternally grateful.
My family and I want to thank you for your courage and your leadership.
First, I present to you my innocence, known to you and many many others from the outset, but proven finally by our justice system after a yearlong investigation and prosecution.
Congressman Jones, You weren’t just brave to defend me. You were RIGHT.
And finally, from one warrior to another, I present to you my most cherished possession: my sword. My love of corps and country will never be broken or diminished, but now it is my love of family that I must honor most with my decision to resign.
I have taken up arms for my country and my corps in two wars and it has been my privilege to serve beside real heroes- some of whom are here today.
Even as I step aside it is my greatest hope that young men and women continue to follow in the footsteps of those who have gone before… To push themselves…To rise to the challenge of becoming Marines. Our country needs you and we will always be grateful to you.
The Marine Officer’s sword represents the highest ideals of military excellence and professionally, one of my greatest achievements.
Honor, courage and commitment are principles by which we Marines LIVE AND DIE.
You, Congressman Jones, through your actions, have demonstrated that you live by those principles as well.
And I, for one am grateful that you do.
Thank you Sir, may god bless you and your family and may God Bless America.
I will post my thoughts on this in a bit. For now, suffice it to say that the Corps does not even realize how much it will miss him. I am certain the Congressman will treasure that sword for the rest of his life.
[Note: The timestamp on the server is different than the actual time this article was posted. I need to be clear that I waited until 1200, EST, to post this and the following article.]
UPDATE: My op-ed piece wrapping up this up can be found here.
UPDATE (1250): Welcome to readers from Blackfive, Michelle Malkin, The Jawa Report, Cao’s Blog, The Jump Blog, The Gun Line, Orbusmax, Kadnine, The Conservative Man, FlightPundit, NIF, Jo’s Cafe, and Andi’s World.
UPDATE: WorldNetDaily has linked here as well. Sadly, they think I’m a guy.
Defend The Defenders Event
June 1, 2005
Please join Lt Ilario Pantano and his mother Merry Pantano this Friday, June 3rd in giving thanks to the volunteers of American Legion Post 10 (Wilmington).
The Fish Fry will raise money for the American Legion’s ongoing operations in support of veterans’ causes which have included:
* Women’s Auxiliary “cheer†visits to the VA hospital in Fayetville, NC bringing gifts to disabled veterans.
* Fundraisers for Sgt Joey Bozik (USA), Lt Ilario Pantano (USMC), and the flag drive for the “Healing Fields†this memorial day weekend.
* Sponsorship of the Family Readiness group of our local Nation Guard Unit HHC 120th Infantry.
* Sponsorship of local sports teams as well as Boy Scout blood drives.
* Care packages to soldiers in Iraq and Christmas parties and support for the families of those overseas.
A special public ceremony honoring the volunteers of the Legion and Congressman Walter B. Jones (R-NC), a steadfast supporter of veterans’ issues, will be held at 12 noon.
The American Legion Post 10 in Wilmington is located at 702 Pine Grove Rd. Meals will be served from 11 am to 7pm. Meals are $6.00 and include Fried fFsh, Cole Slaw, and Hushpuppies.
Point of contact is: Mike Gregorio, Commander of American Legion Post 10
Wilmington, NC, Telephone: 910 799 3806
EXCLUSIVE: Anatomy of a Troll (The Story of Jane)
May 30, 2005
According to the Urban Dictionary, a “troll†is someone who “posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument.â€
Allow me to introduce you to a real life troll. Her alias is Jane Howard. You might know Jane from her many posts throughout the blogosphere, all of which had the same tone: Lt. Ilario Pantano is a horrible officer. Those of us who followed the Pantano case with bated breath and fearful, prayer-filled hearts know Jane well, for we couldn’t go anywhere in the blogosphere without seeing her snide, hateful comments. We were all certain that Jane had a hidden agenda; for no other “regular citizen†was nearly as pointed or personal in their verbal attacks on Ilario’s character. Jane was tireless; posting with three aliases at all hours of the day and night, on any blog that talked about Pantano and allowed comments. Sadly, Jane was as unoriginal as she was venomous, and was forced to resort to cutting and pasting the same tired, embittered story that she got from her “sonâ€, who she claimed was a classmate of Pantano’s in Officer School.
Here at ER, we take great pride in our ability to ferret out the idiots who like to think that because they hide behind an alias, their immature ramblings will not be tied to their real life persona. As with Coburn, whose oral diarrhea is preserved for posterity on this blog and in court testimony, our curiosity was piqued at the idea that yet another cretin whose bitterness far outweighed their intelligence was running amok.
Being the enterprising minds that we are, we finally decided that with such an abundance of clues as to the posters’ identity, we would be doing the public a disservice by not outing these weasels and parading their insanity and stupidity for the entire world to see. After all, they seemed to be begging for attention, and who are we to deny them that?
So now, in keeping with our tradition of exposing losers who think they’re anonymous, I present to you the true story of Jane.
Blogger Exclusive: Interview With Pantano Defense Attorney Charles Gittins
May 26, 2005
As promised. =)
Kit Jarrell: Was this case harder than others you’ve done?
Charles Gittins: No. Self-defense is one of the best defenses under the law. Even if he was not actually endangered, but if he believed he was, he was entitled to use self-defense. So, I was confident that Ilario was not likely to be convicted of murder.
KJ: Was there ever a time when you thought perhaps Ilario WOULD be convicted?
CG: No. Not after I talked to my client and looked into his eyes. I was not going to second guess a Marine officer who had to make a tough choice in a dangerous place in dangerous circumstances and I had every confidence that a Marine Corps jury would feel the same way. That is one reason why we waived the Article 32.
KJ: Was there ever a time you believed he was guilty?
CG: Never.
KJ: There was a lot of talk in the blogs and various forums - some of it by JAG officers - that questioned your tactics; specifically, your choice during the investigation phase not to have Ilario take a polygraph, and during the hearing your decision not to have him testify. Why not have him take a polygraph? Why not let him testify?
CG: I am sure there are lots of people who are not in my position who questioned my tactics. That’s why I was representing Ilario and not them. It is easy to be a spectator, much less easy to be making those tactical calls with the client’s life on the line. The results speak for themselves. Polygraphs are unreliable and only as good as the polygrapher, the questions and the circumstances of the polygraph. Ilario was never offered a polygraph. He didn’t testify because there was no reason to do so. He reported the circumstances to his chain of command shortly after the fact; made a sworn statement in which he again reported exactly what he did and why. Then the Government played his Dateline interview at the Article 32 where Ilario was asked all of the hard questions by Stone Phillips and answered them all. Why would he then testify? He was on the record for the Investigating Officer and could add nothing more to what he had already said.
KJ: How do you respond to accusations that any danger to future Marines caught in Ilario’s position is due solely to your publicizing of the case before the hearing?
CG: Ridiculous. The danger is not in publicizing that the Marine Corps should not have charged Ilario; the danger was in the fact that a Marine Officer who was in a position and needed to make a life or death decision did so, killed two confirmed Iraqi insurgents involved in bomb-making, survived, and then was charged with the most serious crime possible under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, where he faced death or the rest of his life in prison. That’s why Marines will second guess their decisions, not because they read about Lt Pantano’s aggressive defense of his actions in combat.
KJ: Did you approach the defense of Ilario with the intent of showing Coburn’s credibility issues, or did that just fall into your lap?
CG: We knew that SGT Coburn had credibility issues. We always intended to challenge his credibility. The bonus came when he decided he needed to “defend himself” and started making false statements to members of the press after he was ordered not to. We benefited from a witness who showed himself to not be particularly astute.
KJ: What about these autopsies? They recovered the bodies? What did the autopsies show?
CG: Good questions. They have not provided that information to us. Obviously, it didn’t support the Government’s theory of the case.
KJ: The military is becoming more “PC” all the time. Do you think troops being charged with murder during combat is a growing trend? Will we see more of this, or was Ilario’s case an isolated one?
CG: Sadly, yes to both questions.
KJ: How long before we see this in a movie or book?
CG: I wouldn’t know. My job was to represent Ilario on the criminal charges. I don’t do books; I defend people.
KJ: What can we expect from you? Will you be working with Defend the Defenders in any kind of official capacity?
CG: I hope so. I think that I can provide advice on the kinds of cases they should get involved in and, in appropriate cases, perhaps I could assist in the defense.
______________________
Update: Welcome readers from around the blogosphere. I’m posting the links as I see them so you can catch as much info as possible:
Michelle Malkin,
Andi’s World,
One Hand Clapping,
Sierra Faith,
GOPBloggers,
Scared Monkeys,
Blackfive
Outside the Beltway
And Rightly So.
Full Pantano case coverage here.
IT’S OVER: Pantano Charges Dismissed, Interviews Coming
May 26, 2005
I just got this email from Charles Gittins:
Following review of the Article 32 investigator’s report and after reviewing the results of an autopsy of the bodies of the two claimed Iraqi deceased (conducted after the Article 32 hearing had been completed), MajGen Huck determined that all charges and specifications should be dismissed against Lt Pantano.
Newsmax reports that the Marines think “the best interests of 2nd Lt. Pantano and the government have been served by this process”. Really? Why was this even done at all?
————————————–
UPDATE: My blogger exclusive interview with Charles Gittins will be up in bit with his reactions to the decision - but also with his answer to the much-asked question “Why didn’t Ilario testify?”
Also, I will be bringing you a blogger exclusive interview of Ilario Pantano early next week. If there’s something you’d like to ask him, email me at kit.jarrell@gmail.com, and I’ll try to get it in.
UPDATE: The interview is up!
Pantano Prosecutor Speaks
May 19, 2005
The lead trial counsel for the U.S. government in its action against 2 Lt. Ilario Pantano finally spoke about the case yesterday.
“We stand by the evidence we presented,” Maj. Keane said. “We showed a case where a set-up took place, and the accused at best invited self-defense, and the investigating officer did not comment on those elements.”
A source close to the case tells me that Major Keane is privately pushing hard for General Huck to send this to court-martial, against the recommendation of the Article 32 officer that was hand-picked by Huck. Keane took this personally, and was “devastated” by the report that crushed the prosecution’s theory.
What is the prosecution’s theory? That Pantano not only shot them in cold blood, but that he engineered the entire scenario to give himself a self-defense alibi. Apparently they fell asleep while Coburn was perjuring himself and sticking pins in their balloon.
As Gittins stated, “That theory was presented by the prosecution and rejected by the investigating officer.”
By the way, I should have the Ar