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Murder accused 'brave'
12/06/2007 09:11 - (SA)
Camp Pendleton, California - The lawyer for a US Marine accused of murdering several Iraqi men argued on Monday the killings were carried out by an "extremely brave" man in the heat of a battle that left 24 civilians dead.
The argument came during a military court hearing to determine if Lance Cpt Justin L Sharratt, 22, should be court-martialed on three counts of unpremeditated murder in the biggest US criminal case since the start of the Iraq war.
"The forensics in this case dispel the notion that this was an execution," Gary Myers told Lt Col Paul Ware, the investigating officer. "He's not a murderer. Rather, he's extremely brave."
Sharratt is charged in the shooting deaths of brothers Jasib, Kahtan and Jamal Aiad Ahmed.
Myers does not dispute that his client killed the men, but has argued that the November 19, 2005, killings were justified. Prosecutors maintain he and the two other enlisted men accused of killing Iraqi men, women and children, went on a rampage after one of their colleagues was killed in a roadside bombing earlier that day.
The case, like other alleged atrocities committed by US forces in Iraq, has further galvanised Arab and anti-war sentiment against the US presence in Iraq.
His case is the first of the three to go to a hearing known as an Article 32 investigation, the military equivalent of a grand jury. Four officers are also charged with dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the killings.
Murder charges have been dropped against a fourth enlisted man, who will be required to testify about his squadmates' actions.
'I felt threatened'
In a statement dated March 19, 2006, Sharratt told investigators he believed the entire area was hostile and that he could therefore "use any means necessary and my training to eliminate the hostile threat".
He described entering a house after the blast and shooting an armed man in the face. Sharratt told investigators he then went into a bedroom, firing at a man holding an AK-47 rifle and subsequently shooting at others in the room after the armed man fell.
"I could not tell while I was shooting if they were armed or not, but I felt threatened," Sharratt said in his statement.
Sharratt, a veteran of the fierce 2004 battles in Fallujah, was in Haditha on his second Iraq tour.
The troops are from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines.
Defence attorneys for the highest-ranking Marine officer accused in the case, Lt Col Jeffrey Chessani, were expected to present closing statements on Monday in Chessani's own hearing.
An attorney for Capt Randy Stone, a military lawyer facing charges in the case, said on Saturday that an investigating officer recommended dismissing criminal charges against the 19-year Marine veteran and handling the case administratively.
A final decision will be made by commanding general Lt Gen James Mattis.
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