Mattis to take stand in Hadithah case - Marine Corps News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Marine Corps Times

Mattis to take stand in Hadithah case

SAN DIEGO — Lawyers for a Marine officer charged with failing to investigate the killings of 24 Iraqi men, women and children in Hadithah, Iraq, say prosecutors plan to call as a witness a top NATO general.

Their intent, the lawyers say, is to rebut a military judge’s finding that there was evidence of unlawful command influence in the case — the largest criminal case to come out of the Iraq war.

The judge’s finding stems from Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani’s claim that a military lawyer who investigated the November 2005 killings had a conflict of interest when he later advised generals overseeing the Hadithah trials.

Defense attorneys say Marine Gen. James Mattis, who is currently NATO’s top commander in charge of military modernization, is scheduled to take the stand Monday during a motions hearing to address the judge’s finding.

“The prosecution has a high burden to overcome to show that unlawful command influence did not affect the investigation or prosecution of the case,” said Chessani’s civilian attorney, Brian Rooney. He said defense lawyers would ask that the charges against Chessani be dismissed.

Four enlisted Marines were initially charged with murder in the killings that occurred shortly after a roadside bomb hit a convoy, killing the driver of a Humvee and wounding two Marines. Four officers were charged with failing to investigate the case. Charges against all but three Marines, including Chessani, were eventually dropped.

Chessani, the highest ranking officer to be tried in the case, is charged with dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order on allegations he mishandled the aftermath of the shooting deaths on Nov. 19, 2005.

He was the battalion commander.

After the roadside bomb, investigators say, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich and a squad member shot five men by a car at the scene. Wuterich then allegedly ordered his men into several houses, where they cleared rooms with grenades and gunfire, killing more people.

Because the judge found evidence of unlawful command influence, the prosecution must show at the hearing that it did not affect either the direction of the investigation, the charges or the future of the case.

Mattis is being called because he referred charges against Chessani when he was both commander of the Marine Corps Forces Central Command, and the commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. Mattis has since been promoted to a four-star general and serves as commander of both NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Transformation and commander of U.S. Joint Forces.

A Marine spokesman, Lt. Col. Sean Gibson, would not confirm the defense claim, saying Marine Corps policy prohibits the discussion of potential prosecution witnesses prior to testimony. It is also against military policy to divulge the travel plans of commanders.

Rooney said the defense will ask Monday that the charges against Chessani not only be dismissed but that prosecutors are barred from re-filing them.

The judge, however, can take a variety of actions, from barring witnesses and evidence to throwing the case out.

The hearing comes as a second Marine in the case, 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson, is being court-martialed on charges of making false official statements, trying to fraudulently separate from service, attempting to deceive by making false statements and obstruction of justice by trying to impede an investigation.

Grayson was not present at the scene of the killings in Hadithah, but is accused of telling a sergeant to delete photographs of the dead from his digital camera. He has pleaded innocent to the charges.

Still to go to be court-martialed is Wuterich, who faces voluntary manslaughter and other charges.