Posted on 07/16/2007 3:27:25 AM PDT by RedRover
SAN DIEGO - Lance Cpl. Stephen B. Tatum acknowledges using grenades and gunfire to kill several Iraqis in two houses in Haditha, but the Marine told investigators he was responding to what he considered a legitimate threat.
"Knowing what I know now, I feel badly about killing Iraqi civilians who may have been innocent," Tatum told Navy investigators in March 2006. "But I stand fast in my decisions that day, as I reacted to the threats that I perceived at that time."
Tatum, 26, begins a preliminary hearing Monday to determine if he should be tried for murder. He is charged with the unpremeditated murder of two girls in one house and the negligent homicide of two men, a woman and a child in another home.
He is also charged with assaulting two men.
If convicted of murder, he faces life in prison.
The Edmond, Okla., native is the second of three enlisted Marines in the case to face a hearing to assess whether his charges should be referred to a court-martial.
The killings took place Nov. 19, 2005 after a roadside bomb killed a Marine. In the aftermath of the blast, a Marine squad went house to house looking for insurgents, but instead killed Iraqi civilians, including women and children in bed.
Tatum's attorney Jack Zimmerman said his client acted appropriately and raided the houses after taking enemy fire from the vicinity.
"Lance Corporal Tatum responded precisely like he was trained to respond to a hostile situation," Zimmerman said Friday. "He certainly didn't intend to commit any crime."
Last week, the investigating officer for a squad member charged with murder, Lance Cpl. Justin L. Sharratt, said the government's evidence was insufficient for a court-martial and recommended dropping charges against Sharratt.
Recommendations are nonbinding; the final decisions about whether charges should go to trial rests with Lt. Gen. James Mattis, the general overseeing the case.
According to investigative documents, Tatum went with several other Marines to a house, where he said he and Cpl. Hector Salinas threw grenades into a room after hearing what they thought was the metal-on-metal sound of an AK-47 being readied to fire. The squad leader, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich and another Marine, Lance Cpl. Humberto Manuel Mendoza, then fired into the room.
Tatum said he joined in the firing and shot at least four people at a distance of about 20 feet. He said he did not positively identify those he shot as insurgents because he considered the entire house to be hostile.
Mendoza has been given immunity from prosecution and may testify at Tatum's hearing.
The preliminary hearing for Wuterich, who is charged with murdering 18 Iraqis, is set for Aug. 22.
In another house, Tatum said he may have shot as many as five people. He determined the house was hostile because Wuterich began firing his weapon.
"I did not positively identify anyone in the room as I could only make out shapes kneeling down and I considered anyone to be hostile based on Sergeant Wuterich's engagements in the room," Tatum told investigators. "I did not shoot randomly with the intent to harm innocent Iraqi civilians."
Aside from the three enlisted Marines charged with murder, four officers are charged with dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the deaths. A hearing officer for Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, the highest-ranking Marine charged, has recommended a court-martial.
Thanks for the ping.
And thanks for helping us all keep the faith.
Semper Fi, Sir.
Ping!
“Doesn’t anybody here know how to play this game?”
And just what game is W playing while Marines, Border Patrolmen, and HIS OWN STAFF get fed to (FED) SHARKS!
I’m miles and miles past disgusted with this bunch.
Yeah, it’s not like there’s a long and well established track record of using women and children as human shields and/or putting them in harms way to provoke a propaganda response from our domestic enemy.
All who allow themselves to be swayed by such tactics are equally responsible for the continued use of such tactics.
Their weak, stupid, ease of being manipulated is the success that encourages continuation.
I have hopes for a reasonable outcome for this hearing because the IO, LtCol Paul Ware, clearly gets it. He was also the IO for the LCpl Sharratt hearing and wrote this recommendation.
Many thanks, Red. I’ll be watching for the updates.
save
Shortly after that, there'll be a more balanced (though sketchy) online report from the North County Times.
Any lurid report will have thousands of hits on Google by the end of the day.
Any news that's favorable to the defense will barely make it out of San Diego.
Fingers crossed we'll be able to make sense of what is happening out there!
I agree.
If Cpl. Mendoza hadn't shot an insurgent through a window in house number two, the defense would have a more difficult challenge.
It'll come down to which scenario is more believable: Marines as out-of-control killers or Marines who followed their training in an engagement with the enemy. And the LCpl Sharratt hearing established that the Marines were not indiscriminately killing civilians.
Sounds like you’ve seen this kind of reporting out of AP and Reuters before!
Last I looked there were more than 10,000 hits for “Dela Cruz urinated Haditha”. And that came from a drive-by shooting by prosecutors during the Capt Stone hearing. Who knows what today will bring?
Just did a quick noontime scan of the horizon. Nothing yet.
Checked in, and found you're looking in the wrong place. Try the rock.
;^)
Hearing begins for Marine charged in Haditha killings
SAN DIEGO (AP) - The preliminary hearing for a Marine lance corporal charged with murdering two girls in a squad action that killed 24 Iraqis in Haditha began today in San Diego.
Lance Corporal Stephen Tatum has acknowledged killing several Iraqis on November 19th, 2005, but says he did so because he was responding to a legitimate threat.
Tatum's attorney made an opening statement at the start of the so-called Article 32 investigation. Speaking of his client, attorney Jack Zimmerman said: "He was taught that deadly force is the proper response to a threat."
Hearing officer Lieutenant Colonel Paul Ware will assess the evidence against Tatum and make a recommendation about whether he should stand trial.
The final decision rests with the general overseeing the case.
Tatum is also charged with the negligent homicide of 2 men, a woman and a child, and with assaulting two men. The Marine, wearing his desert camouflage uniform, spoke only to confirm his identity.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.