Haditha case implodes as charges changed.

This is typical but at least some charges are still being laid. In the Blackwater case no one is even charged as yet. I wonder what will happen to the whistleblower Sgt Dela Cruz. He will no doubt be ostracized at the very least. The culprits murdered everyone who could have served as a star witness.

Haditha case implodes as charges changed


Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Thursday October 4, 2007
Guardian Unlimited


Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich may have a murder charge reduced to negligent homicide. Photograph: AP

The case against US marines involved in one of the most infamous incidents of the Iraq war, the killing of civilians at Haditha, was on the verge of falling apart today.
The Haditha scandal gained notoriety not only in the Middle East but around the world, ranking alongside the 2004 Abu Ghraib prison abuses in terms of infamy. It was the most serious case of an alleged war crime by US troops in Iraq.

None of the marines originally accused is now likely to face murder charges. The last of those accused of the killings was told today the recommendation was the murder charge be reduced to a lesser offence.

Seventeen civilians, including women and children, and seven alleged insurgents were killed at Haditha. The accusation was that US marines went on a killing spree after one of their comrades died in a roadside bombing.

But one by one the charges against four marines have either been dropped or reduced. Four marine officers were also charged with allegedly failing to investigate the incident but the case against two have already been reduced or dropped.

While there will be suspicion that there is a reluctance on the part of the US to take action against its own troops, investigators faced problems in gathering evidence.

Almost all those who could have acted as witnesses are dead, and, as the incident did not emerge until months later, there was no forensic evidence.

The last of the marines to face the pre-trial hearing at Camp Pendeleton, California, was Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich, 27.

Sgt Wuterich and another marine allegedly shot five men by a car at the scene, then he ordered his men into several houses, where they cleared rooms with grenades and gunfire killing unarmed civilians in the process. The marines claimed insurgents were using the civilians as shields.

The investigating officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Paul Ware, after reviewing the evidence against Sgt Wuterich, today recommended to the commanding officer overseeing the case, Lieutenant-General James Mattis, the murder charge be replaced with one of negligent homicide.

Mark Zaid, a defence lawyer, confirmed the decision: "The recommendation was for lesser charges, none of which include murder."

If Lt-Gen Mattis accepts the recommendation and a similar one for one of the corporals, no one will face murder charges. Lt-Gen Mattis has already dismissed charges against three of the marines originally accused.

Neal Puckett, Sgt Wuterich's lawyer, said of today's recommendation: "We're both very pleased and also not surprised, given how the other cases have gone. There has never been any inkling that any of these marines lost control or went on a rampage."

Sgt Wuterich said he regretted the loss of civilian life at Haditha, but said he believed he was coming under fire from the homes and so was operating within military combat rules when he ordered his men to attack the buildings.

"Based on the information I had at the time, based on the situation, I made the best decisions I could have at that time," Sgt Wuterich said. "Engaging was the only choice."


Sgt Sanick Dela Cruz, testifying against him, claimed Sgt Wuterich, a week before the killings, had said: "If we ever get hit again, we should kill everybody in that area."

He added that Sgt Wuterich had said after the incident: "If anyone asks, say they were running away". Sgt Dela Cruz claimed Sgt Wuterich had shot the men by the car even though their hands were in the air and they were not running.

The last officer awaiting his pre-trial hearing in the Haditha case will start that process at the end of the month. First Lieutenant Andrew Grayson is accused of not properly investigating the incident.