http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/nation/1573224
Sept. 12, 2002, 11:20PM
2 pilots face charges in mistaken bombing
Four Canadian soldiers killed in attack
By ROBERT BURNS ... Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- The Air Force is recommending criminal charges against two Air National Guard pilots for their role in the fatal bombing of Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan, a senior defense official said Thursday.
The charges were to be announced today at the Pentagon after the U.S. Central Command and the Canadian government released additional details from a joint investigation of the April 17 tragedy.
The senior defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Air Force would recommend that F-16 pilot Maj. Harry Schmidt be charged with involuntary manslaughter. He dropped a 500-pound bomb on a group of Canadian soldiers, mistaking them for enemy forces. Four Canadians were killed and eight were wounded.
The Air Force also is recommending Schmidt be charged with failure to exercise appropriate flight discipline.
Maj. William Umbach, the lead pilot, would face charges of aiding and abetting Schmidt in the involuntary manslaughter, the official said. As lead pilot, he should have more forcefully intervened to stop Schmidt from dropping the bomb until confirmation of the target was received, the Air Force says.
The charges were first reported Thursday night by NBC News.
Because Schmidt and Umbach are members of the Illinois Air National Guard and are no longer mobilized under federal authority, they would have to be recalled to active duty to face the charges.
It was unclear Thursday whether the recommended charges against them will be considered under Article 32 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice -- essentially like a grand jury proceeding in the civilian judicial system -- or will be taken directly to a court martial.
The inadvertent killings caused a public uproar in Canada. The joint U.S.-Canadian investigation faulted both pilots for failure to follow established procedures to ensure that they attacked a legitimate target.
Central Command publicly released the basic findings of the investigation in June but did not release details. It said it needed more time to remove classified information from the report.
Chretien's remarks are useful in illustrating the ideological alliance between the terrorists and the United Nations, and even some "home grown" leftists.
When presented in this light, it actually helps define WHO our enemies are.
Let our enemies at home and abroad be exposed, and let them be destroyed.