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CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — The government has dropped a murder charge against a Marine who pleaded guilty Tuesday to dereliction of duty for killing an unarmed Iraqi detainee during a battle to recapture the city of Fallujah. If convicted of murder, Sgt. Jermaine Nelson could have faced a maximum sentence of life in prison and a dishonorable discharge. Instead, he now faces a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a bad conduct discharge – one grade less than dishonorable. Defense attorney Joseph Low told reporters the plea agreement says Nelson will not serve any prison time and will...

A Marine sergeant pleaded guilty Tuesday morning to two counts of dereliction of duty in connection with the shooting death of an unarmed detainee during the opening hours of the November 2004 battle for the Iraqi city of Fallujah.

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (AP) - A military judge has dismissed a murder charge against a Marine accused of killing an unarmed detainee in Iraq. The charge against Sgt. Jermaine Nelson was dismissed Tuesday at Camp Pendleton after he agreed to plead guilty to dereliction of duty. His attorney Joseph Low says the plea agreement calls for no prison time and an honorable discharge. The 28-year-old Nelson could have faced up to life in prison if convicted of murder. Nelson was among three Marines accused of killing detainees in 2004 during house-to-house fighting to recapture Fallujah.

CAMP PENDLETON ---- The murder and dereliction of duty trial for the last of three defendants charged with killing an unarmed detainee during a 2004 battle for what was then the insurgent-held Iraqi city of Fallujah gets under way Tuesday in a base courtroom. Sgt. Jermaine Nelson is accused of killing an unnamed detainee he and members of his Camp Pendleton squad captured in the opening hours of the battle that began on Nov. 9, 2004. Two co-defendants, former Marine sergeants Ryan Weemer and Jose L. Nazario Jr., were acquitted in separate trials for the same alleged offense. (snip) Nazario,...

I posted the following message on the CBS message board yesterday and also sent the same message to Fox News' Bill O'Reilly. If you agree with my message, I would appreciate it if you would forward this e-mail to others in your address book. I believe this is very important and a "grass roots" effort may be the only way to force Dan Rather, CBS, and others to accept the responsibility of their careless and destructive actions: "I think all American citizens should be outraged at CBS for making the "abuse" pictures public. CBS has done serious damage to the...

WASHINGTON, July 1, 2009 – A retired Army captain who survived third-degree burns over 30 percent of his body while stationed in Iraq believes that through family, faith and a lot of hard work, anything can be overcome. Retired Army Capt. Alvin Eugene Shell Jr. survived third-degree burns over 30 percent of his body while stationed in Iraq. He credits his family, faith and hard work for his recovery. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Capt. Alvin Eugene Shell Jr., who served with the 16th Military Police Brigade, credits his wife, Danielle, his three sons, his mother...

A group of retired Marines is rallying behind Sgt. Jermaine Nelson, the last of three Marines to face trial in the killing of unarmed prisoners during a battle in Fallouja, Iraq, in November 2004. Two other defendants have been found innocent: former Sgt. Jose Nazario in federal court in August, and Sgt. Ryan Weemer in a court-martial at Camp Pendleton in April. Nelson's case is set for a pretrial hearing Monday at Camp Pendleton. He stands accused of unpremeditated murder and dereliction of duty. Calls for the charges to be dropped have come from retired Col. G.I. Wilson; William McNulty...

Hot&sunny, ops 24/7, bad guys regrouping. The brawl will begin again...probably tonight. bad guys redistributing ammo&moving for new cover. We're on the edge of town&hear the imam's rail against us...morale extremely high...extra intensity, friends on the line. senior nco's and officers here, feel the pull. They've trained everyone on the line...Today at the Div. Chaplain office. He waded into Ar Ramadi during the firefight three days ago...to provide ministry at the aid station...where he was needed. Second, coordinating Holy Week Services. A)worry about large numbers in one place. B)organists in short supply and no organ.C)We are going to worship..we need...

CAMP PENDLETON ---- Despite having failed to win convictions of two co-defendants, the Marine Corps announced Friday it will prosecute Sgt. Jermaine Nelson for killing an unarmed Iraqi prisoner of war. Lt. Col. David Griesmer said a plea from Nelson's attorney to drop the murder charge has been rejected. The attorney, Joseph Low, said Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland believes the case should be decided by a jury. "Sometimes, a single person does not want to be the decision-maker," Low said of Helland, who has the authority to order the charges against Nelson withdrawn. "The general decided he would rather see...

Murder charges against a Marine sergeant at Camp Pendleton in the death of a prisoner in Fallujah, Iraq, will not be dropped, despite the acquittal of two Marines in the same case. Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland, commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, has decided that the case against Sgt. Jermaine Nelson should proceed to a court-martial.

Note: The following text is a quote: Iraqi-Born Dutch Citizen Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Terrorism Conspiracy Against Americans in Iraq WASHINGTON – An Iraqi-born Dutch citizen was sentenced to 25 years in prison today for conspiring to murder Americans overseas, including by planting roadside bombs targeting U.S. soldiers in Fallujah, Iraq, and by demonstrating on video how these explosives would be detonated to destroy American vehicles and their occupants. The sentencing of Wesam al-Delaema, age 36, was announced today by David Kris, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; Jeffrey A. Taylor, U.S. Attorney for the District of...

PERFECT VALOR TO PREMIERE MAY 16th On May 16, 2009, Citizens United Productions will premiere “Perfect Valor” at the GI Film Festival in Washington DC. Peabody Award winning Producer, David C. Taylor and noted contemporary author and military historian, Richard S. Lowry, have worked tirelessly with the talented production staff to create a compelling tribute to all the men and women who have served in Iraq. ORLANDO, FLORIDA April 14, 2009 — Every American needs to see Perfect Valor. This film captures the sacrifices of those who have served our nation. From the young man who joined the Marines to...

The attorney for the third and final Marine charged with killing an unarmed insurgent in Iraq says prosecutors should heed the acquittals of two co-defendants and drop the case against his client. Attorney Joseph Low said Friday that it makes no sense for the Marine Corps to pursue the case against Sgt. Jermaine Nelson. "I am submitting that request to the Marine Corps," Low said. "The Marine Corps should have gotten the message loud and clear now that these cases should never have been brought." ~ snip ~Besides preparing a formal request for the Marine Corps to drop the case...

Sgt Ryan Weemer, accused of killing an unarmed man during the battle of Fallujah. Acquitted by a jury of eight officers who had been in combat. Good thing Jack Murtha wasn't on the jury; he would have likely voted for conviction before the first witness was sworn. Tell me again how he keeps winning elections. And then fix it, please.

A military jury on Thursday acquitted a Marine sergeant on charges of murdering an unarmed detainee during battle in Fallujah, Iraq.

CAMP PENDLETON -- A military jury this morning acquitted Marine Sgt. Ryan Weemer in the killing of an unarmed Iraqi insurgent during the battle for the city of Fallujah in 2004. The 26-year-old Illinois native hugged his attorney, who broke into tears on hearing the not-guilty verdict. Weemer's wife, sister and high school English teacher, who attended each day of the trial that started March 30, also cried as the decision was read. Weemer was charged last year with unpremeditated murder and dereliction of duty. Prosecutors alleged that as a corporal, he killed one of four captive insurgents the government...

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. – A military jury has acquitted an Illinois Marine sergeant on charges of murdering an unarmed detainee during battle in Fallujah, Iraq. The jury of eight Marines who served in Iraq or Afghanistan also acquitted Sgt. Ryan Weemer on Thursday of dereliction of duty in the November 2004 death.

CAMP PENDLETON ----- A panel of eight Marine officers is deliberating the fate of a sergeant accused of killing an Iraqi insurgent prisoner of war in what a prosecutor acknowledged is a "tough case." During his closing argument in the trial of 26-year-old Sgt. Ryan Weemer, prosecutor Capt. Nick Gannon suggested that at minimum, the 26 year-old Marine is guilty of voluntary manslaughter in the 2004 incident in the city of Fallujah. Gannon said two statements Weemer made to investigators in 2006 contain no mention of self-defense. Weemer's attorney has said self-defense is what drove his client's actions. "This case...

CAMP PENDLETON ---- A Marine Corps hero showered praise Monday on a comrade who is on trial for killing an unarmed prisoner of war. Navy Cross recipient Sgt. Maj. Brad Kasal said the accused Marine, Sgt. Ryan Weemer, was a skilled warrior who always displayed "excellent" military characteristics. Kasal was given the Navy Cross, the second-highest award a Marine can receive, for saving fellow Marines despite suffering severe wounds during the "Hell House" battle in Fallujah, Iraq, on Nov. 13, 2004. Both Kasal, now head of a five-state recruiting region based in Des Moines, Iowa, and Weemer were injured that...

Six Days in Fallujah, developed by Atomic Games and set to be published by Konami, takes gamers into the 2004 battle for Fallujah, the largest urban assault since Vietnam. Developers said they're not seeking to exploit the war in Iraq for profit but to use video games, the medium of choice for young people and soldiers alike, to illuminate an important battle. To that end, the game is incorporating recorded interviews and other documentary techniques. Developers say it's high time a video game aspired to do more than just entertain. "It's time for video games to do what movies, music...

Sgt. Ryan Weemer faces accusation he shot unarmed detainee in 2004 CAMP PENDLETON ---- After failing to convict the first of three men to face trial in the alleged slaying of four insurgents in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004, authorities will try again next week when Sgt. Ryan Weemer goes on trial. Weemer, the man at the center of the case, faces charges of unpremeditated murder and failing to adhere to the military's rules governing the treatment of captured enemy combatants. He has pleaded not guilty. Weemer was part of a squad from the base's 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment that...

CAMP PENDLETON ---- After failing to convict the first of three men to face trial in the alleged slaying of four insurgents in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004, authorities will try again next week when Sgt. Ryan Weemer goes on trial. Weemer, the man at the center of the case, faces charges of unpremeditated murder and failing to adhere to the military's rules governing the treatment of captured enemy combatants. He has pleaded not guilty. Weemer was part of a squad from the base's 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment that is alleged to have encountered four suspected insurgents during the search...

WASHINGTON, March 20, 2009 – In April 2004, at the height of the insurgency in Iraq, five female soldiers unwittingly found themselves fighting alongside Marines in the battle for Ramadi and Fallujah. Their story is told in a documentary film bearing their unit name, “Team Lioness,” which has been shown in private and public screenings throughout the United States and Europe in the past year. The Center for Women Veterans hosted the film at the Department of Veterans Affairs headquarters here yesterday. “These stories are important to us at VA, because women veterans are coming to VA in great numbers,...

Note: The following text is a quote: http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2009/February/09-nsd-168.html Iraqi-Born Dutch Citizen Pleads Guilty to Terrorism Conspiracy Against Americans in Iraq Defendant Also Agrees to Plead Guilty to Beating D.C. Prison Guard Unconscious WASHINGTON – An Iraqi-born Dutch citizen today pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to murder Americans overseas, including by planting roadside bombs targeting U.S. soldiers in Fallujah, Iraq, and by demonstrating on video how these explosives would be detonated to destroy American vehicles and their occupants. The guilty plea by Wesam al-Delaema, a/k/a Wesam Khalaf Chayed Delaeme, age 36, was announced today by Matthew G. Olsen, Acting Assistant...

An intense but short battle takes place on November 29th, 2007, Fallujah, Iraq. (Video on site)

FALLUJAH — Iraqi’s independent security capabilities continued to expand throughout eastern Anbar province as the commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, recently turned over command of the battalion’s final entry control point, ECP 1, to the Fallujah District Chief of Police, Feb. 5. Entry control points are manned security positions that screen persons attempting to enter specific areas for weapons, contraband and a criminal history. They are often used as a security measure around cities to protect the population. Now that Iraqi Security Forces control all entry control points in the Fallujah area, Coalition forces will be...

CAMP PENDLETON ---- The Monday start of a trial for the second of three men accused of killing four unarmed captives during a 2004 battle in Iraq has been delayed. Sgt. Jermaine Nelson was scheduled to go on trial in a base courtroom on a charge of unpremeditated murder for allegedly shooting one of the captives. No bodies were ever found in a case built almost exclusively on an admission from one of the defendants. Nelson also is charged with three counts of dereliction of duty for failing to follow the rules of engagement, the laws of war and the...

The guest speaker, U.S Marine Sergeant Jason Arellano was introduced through a video clip. The clip showed him being carried off the field of battle after receiving serious injuries in a fire fight in Fallujah, Iraq when there was serious doubt as to whether or not he would survive. As he started his presentation Arellano asked two questions, “When you look at our flag what do you see and feel? When you hear our National Anthem what do you hear and what does that mean to you?” Rather than talk about himself extensively, Arellano brought the sacrifice of Veterans home...

This is the first time Marine Cpl. Zachary Briseno will be in his Fort Worth, Texas, home for Thanksgiving in four and a half years since his two tours of duty in Iraq. That’s something to be thankful for. But the 23-year-old has a furrier reason for thankfulness this week. Briseno, who lost both of his legs below the knees almost a year ago in an IED attack in Fallujah, is getting a specially trained guide dog to help him in his day-to-day tasks. The dog was trained through Carolina Canines for Veterans, an adjunct program of the local nonprofit...

We spent a fascinating second day in Fallujah, guests of B-Company, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. Capt. Dan Micklis and Lt. Joe Passman have been showing us around downtown Fallujah, and as I hope you can see from the photos, there’s a lot of life and a lot of color in the markets. Lt. Passman is one of the last marines in Fallujah. His unit is based at a building pretty much in the city center, where he works in close conjunction with the Iraqi Police. The marines we met were, as usual, highly motivated and very interesting to talk with....

WASHINGTON, Nov. 10, 2008 – Since Anbar province returned to Iraqi control, Iraqi security forces are taking more responsibility and U.S. Marines in western Iraq are increasingly performing an overwatch role, the deputy commander of Multinational Force West said today. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Martin Post, briefing Pentagon correspondents by satellite from Fallujah, said a very few foreign fighters are trying to infiltrate the country, and Iraqi forces are in the lead in trying to stop them. The coalition leadership in Anbar province has been pleased “across the board” with Iraqi security forces, the general said. “We're most happy with...

WASHINGTON — When Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly deployed to Iraq in February, the violence had fallen so low in Anbar province that he began figuring out how to start closing bases and prepare to go home. In the last 10 months the Marines in Fallujah have done what was unthinkable before the surge began — they have quietly transferred out of one of Anbar province's largest cities. FOX News has learned in an exclusive interview with Kelly from Fallujah that 80 percent of the move is complete. In February there were 8,000 Marines living at Fallujah base. Now there...

When Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly deployed to Iraq in February, the violence had fallen so low in Anbar province that he began figuring out how to start closing bases and prepare to go home. In the last 10 months the Marines in Fallujah have done what was unthinkable before the surge began — they have quietly transferred out of one of Anbar province's largest cities. FOX News has learned in an exclusive interview with Kelly from Fallujah that 80 percent of the move is complete. In February there were 8,000 Marines living at Fallujah base. Now there are about...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Prosecutors want to drop contempt proceedings against two Marines who refused to testify against their former squad leader when he was being tried for the killings of four unarmed Iraqi detainees. Los Angeles-based U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien filed the motion Monday, asking U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson to drop the charges against Sgt. Ryan Weemer and Sgt. Jermaine Nelson. They refused to testify at the civilian trial of former Marine Jose Luis Nazario Jr., who was found not guilty of charges that he killed or caused others to kill four detainees in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004. Weemer...

Government Drops Contempt Charges Against Sergeants Weemer and NelsonThis is a developing story. For background on the contempt charges, see here.

Defend Our Marines | Nathaniel R. Helms | Thursday, September 4, 2008 [pdf]Riverside, California – A reporter quickly learns that nothing is ever as it seems. That was never more apparent than at the recent US District Court trial of a former Marine acquitted of war crimes that allegedly occured in Fallujah, Iraq almost four years ago. Former sergeant and infantry squad leader Jose L. Nazario was a Riverside Police Department probationary patrolman when he was arrested last year by federal agents and charged in US District Court with killing two enemy prisoners of war. “Was” is the operative word...

Prosecutors faced uphill fight in proving 2004 killingsA former Camp Pendleton Marine acquitted last week in the slaying of four detainees during a 2004 battle for the city of Fallujah, Iraq, says his most vivid memory of those days was "constant fear." "We were running out of ammo and we weren't able to clear every house," Jose L. Nazario Jr. said Friday, one day after a U.S. District Court civilian jury declared him not guilty of manslaughter and related charges in the first-ever trial of its kind. "We were moving past buildings and structures where we could have been ambushed...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (Aug. 29) -- Jurors wept and embraced former Marine Jose Luis Nazario Jr. after acquitting him of voluntary manslaughter in the killings of unarmed Iraqi detainees during a fierce 2004 battle.

Developing story...

Riverside, California--A jury of 12 civilians began deliberations Wednesday afternoon in the case of a former Marine infantry squad leader accused of killing four unarmed insurgents in Fallujah Iraq almost four years ago. Former Sgt. Jose L. Nazario faces federal charges of voluntary manslaughter, abetting murder, assault with a deadly weapon and unlawfully using his firearm. Assistant US Attorney Jerry Behnke took the first shots in closing arguments that began Wednesday morning. Before offering closing arguments, he offered the jury of nine women and three men a surreptitiously recorded telephone conversation between the former squad leader and Sgt. Jermaine Nelson,...

Riverside, California--After two years, countless thousands of dollars and the destruction of far too many reputations, the manslaughter trial of former Marine Corps Sergeant Jose L. Nazario is almost over. Tuesday afternoon at the close of business US District Judge Stephen Larson told the lawyers and spectators in the crowded court room in Riverside that the case against Nazario will go to the jury Thursday morning. From the sound of the things, the news didn’t reach the nine women and three men any too soon. They were already asking Larson when the trial would end, he said. Despite watching the...

Riverside, California--The first witness with personal knowledge of what allegedly happened at Fallujah, Iraq in 2004 is expected to testify today against his former squad leader in US District Court. Former Lance Corporal Corey Carlisle was a Mormon missionary working in Indiana last year when he told a Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigator he heard and saw events that indicated several of his squad mates killed enemy prisoners in the opening hours of the battle. Carlisle told NCIS Special Agent Mark O Fox that his former squad leader Sgt. Jose L. Nazario, his fire team leader Cpl. Ryan Weemer, and...

Riverside, California--There is a lot at stake in the utilitarian court room dominated by the Seal of the United States District Court for Central California at Riverside. This is where former Marine Corps Sergeant Jose Luis Nazario, 28, is on trial for allegedly killing enemy combatants his squad captured in the opening hours of the battle for Fallujah, Iraq almost four years ago. Two other Marines in the squad he led are charged with unpremeditated murder and dereliction of duty by the Marine Corps. For the record, Nazario says it never happened. On trial with Nazario is almost 250 years...

Wednesday, August 20: Jury selection is complete in the Jose Nazario trial. Fifty-four jurors were pooled, twelve (and two alternates) were chosen. There are nine women and three men on the jury, most have military members in their family and some are veterans. Jose Nazario is happy with the jury selection and confident that justice will be served. Opening statements are scheduled for tomorrow. And so we begin....

My name is April Popaditch, wife of Gysgt Nick Popaditch (ret) AKA Cee-gar Marine to FreeRepublic. This web site was such a source of strength to my family and I when my husband was wounded in Fallujah, Iraq April 2004. The beauty of the words and prayers that we read on a daily basis from all of you, will stay in our hearts forever. Military life is a sacrifice but one you never regret. Support from people you've never met, is life affirming and gives us the strength to carry on our new missions in life. I hear on the...

IRVINE, Calif. - A former Marine sergeant facing the first federal civilian prosecution of a military member accused of a war crime says there is much more at stake than his claim of innocence on charges that he killed unarmed detainees in Fallujah, Iraq. In the view of Jose Luis Nazario Jr., U.S. troops may begin to question whether they will be prosecuted by civilians for doing what their military superiors taught them to do in battle...

Two Camp Pendleton Marines, ordered to testify against former sergeant Jose L. Nazario by the US District Judge presiding over his voluntary manslaughter trial, have decided to refuse the judge’s order. Kevin B. McDermott, the Orange County attorney representing Nazario, says he received the news this morning. “It shows the solidarity of these Marines,” McDermott says. Nazario is charged with two counts of voluntary manslaughter for allegedly executing two captured enemy combatants, compelling his subordinates to assist him in killing two others, and unlawfully using a firearm--his M-16 rifle--in the commission of the crime. Weemer and Nelson face general court-martials...

Government prosecutors, who filed an application in US District Court for an order compelling two Marines co-defendants to testify against their former squad leader, revealed that one of them was a government informant. All three men are accused of executing four enemy combatants they captured in the opening hours of the month-long battle of Fallujah in November 2004. Documents filed in the US District Court for Central California August 11 on reveal that Sgt. Jermaine Nelson, a co-defendant in the case against former Marine Jose L. Nazario, tried to trick his former squad leader into admitting the incident occurred. Nazario,...

The Marine Corps is considering the unprecedented step of appointing a reserve lawyer to assist the US Attorney for Central California in prosecuting former Marine Sgt. Jose L. Nazario in US District Court in Riverside, California, Defend Our Marines has learned.A Marine Corps spokesman at Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C. confirmed Thursday that a request for an SJA to assist in the prosecution of Nazario was received at HQMC from the US Attorneys Office for Central California. Nazario was indicted by a federal Grand Jury last August 17 for allegedly executing two prisoners of war at Fallujah. In a...