CAMP PENDLETON, (California), Dec 21: The US military charged a Marine squad leader with 13 counts of murder in the killings last year of unarmed civilians in Haditha, Iraq, one of the man's defence lawyers said.
The charges handed down against Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich carry a maximum penalty of life in prison, but do not include premeditated murder, said attorney Mark Zaid.
Wuterich led a squad at the centre of the probe into the Nov 19, 2005, shooting of 24 unarmed men, women and children in the western Iraqi town. It is one of a series of cases in which US service members have been accused, and in some cases convicted, of involvement in killing civilians.
Zaid said others investigated in the case had yet to receive word from the military on any possible charges, but sources have said at least four other Marines may be charged.
Wuterich was charged in 12 individual deaths, Zaid said, adding that a 13th count involves the deaths of six people.
“I presume these are part of the 12, but it's impossible for me to tell from the charge sheet if that's the case,” Zaid said as he read from the document.
A Marine colonel was scheduled to discuss the case in a press briefing at 1 p.m. (2100 GMT) at Camp Pendleton.
The military investigation has centred on a squad of Marines led by Wuterich, who sued Democratic Rep. John Murtha in August after he said US troops “killed innocent civilians in cold blood.”
Capt. Lucas McConnell, who was monitoring fighting in and around Haditha on the day of the incident, also expects to face charges, his attorney has said. McConnell was not present for the shooting but may be accused of dereliction of duty for his reports on the incident.
Once charged, the defendants are entitled to an Article 32 hearing, in which a military judge would decide if there is enough evidence to convene a court-martial.
Iraqi witnesses say the Marines shot civilians in their homes to retaliate for the death of their comrade, Lance Cpl.
Miguel Terrazas, who was ripped in half by a roadside bomb that exploded under a convoy rolling through Haditha, some 96 km north of Baghdad.
Defence lawyers dispute that version of events and say the men from Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division were engaged in a furious battle in Haditha after the bomb exploded and the civilians may have died during the chaos.
Two probes were launched into Haditha, one centering on the shooting and another into the Marines' procedures afterward. Earlier this year, US President George W. Bush vowed that any US Marine guilty of shooting Iraqi civilians would be punished. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has called the Haditha killings a “terrible crime.”—Reuters
