Murtha granted exemption from explaining

A member of Congress who publicly condemned U.S. Marines fighting the war on terror in Iraq for killing civilians in "cold blood" is being granted an exemption that means he will not have to answer questions about his statements, including his earlier explanation that his information came from the highest levels of the Marine Command.

Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani

The exemption has come in a military court proceeding against Marine Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, one of four Marines still facing charges in the battle that erupted when a team of his Marines was attacked by insurgents in the city of Haditha.

Murtha's statements are key to the defense of Chessani, according to officials with The Thomas More Law Center, which is representing Chessani against the charges.

"If you go back [to Murtha's description] there was no [Improvised Explosive Device], there was no firefight, it was like there was a phantom menace," said Brian Rooney, a spokesman for the center, told WND.

"However we have the firefight on video. You can't deny it," Rooney told WND after a recent two-day motions hearing in Chessani's case came to a conclusion.

But now the hearing officer, Col. Stephen Folsom, has exempted Murtha from having to answer any questions.

"Military Judge Col. Stephen Folsom's, USMC, ruling yesterday refusing our request to take the deposition of Congressman John Murtha, D-Pa., is the latest indication that it will be impossible for Marine Lt. Col. Chessani to get a fair trial regarding [the] Nov. 19, 2005, Haditha incident," said Richard Thompson, chief counsel of the Thomas More Law Center.

"This entire prosecution is politically motivated and stinks to high heaven. Denying us the right to take Murtha's deposition so that we could show undue command influence, as well as denial of our request for production of documents in the possession of Lt. Col. Chessani's superiors makes it impossible for us to render this loyal Marine officer the effective assistance of counsel he deserves – they are attempting to throw him under the bus," Thompson said. "In many ways this is a trial like the one in 'Alice in Wonderland'' – the verdict first and then the trial."

Chessani is accused of "dereliction of duty" and "orders" violations for the terrorist attack in Haditha, Iraq. At the time, Chessani was battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, which is one of the most decorated battalions in the nation's history.

There were 14 Marine casualties, one Marine killed in action and 13 others injured. The insurgents were hiding amongst women and children in civilian homes, and 15 civilians died in the firefight between the Marines and insurgents.

But the law center said months before the investigation was finished, Murtha "made the rounds on TV news programs claiming there was no firefight in Haditha on Nov. 19, 2005, and that the Marines killed innocent Iraqi civilians in 'cold blood' and officers 'covered it up.' Murtha publicly stated he received his information from the highest levels of the Marine Command – this statement in itself is enough to cause a dismissal of the charges because of undue command influence."

Murtha, the law center noted, "holds significant influence over military appropriations and in the past has boasted he can get the Pentagon to do what he wants."

Murtha also has ties to Navy Secretary Donald Winters, who assigned five dozen investigators to look into the Haditha allegations.

"In the next couple of weeks we will reveal startling facts tracing the impetus for this prosecution to the highest levels of military and civilian command," Thompson said.

"We remain undaunted despite these latest rulings. We will continue to vigorously defend Lt. Col. Chessani against this politically driven prosecution. At least one more motion hearing is scheduled in April, and we intend to file several more motions that will be argued during that time," Thompson said.

The law center had wanted to question Murtha, the same congressman who was caught on tape negotiating bribes with Arab sheiks during the FBI's 1980 Abscam investigation and was an unindicted co-conspirator in the case, about his comments because of his well-known anti-war stance and the fact the Haditha claims were ammunition for his political perspective, the law center said.

The defense team had presented five motions in the hearing. They included: a motion to compel the deposition of Murtha, a motion to dismiss all of the charges due to their constitutional vagueness, a motion to dismiss some of the charges because the same allegations have been charged in multiple ways, a motion to compel discovery that the government has kept from the defense because the government judged it was not relevant, and a motion for a new Article 32 hearing because the last hearing was defective.

Brian Rooney, a Marine veteran and attorney for the Law Center, said the most dramatic testimony during the motions hearing came from Marine intelligence officer Maj. Jeffrey Dinsmore.

He said Dinsmore told the judge about the intelligence provided to the Marines that they should expect an attack, and the video showed the attack and provided confirmation that the attack had been carried out by insurgents in Iraq.

He said Dinsmore provided to the judge the same "story board" Marine intelligence officers used to brief Chessani after the attack.

Rooney said the documentation showed how the insurgents' IED exploded, killing one Marine and injuring several others, and how the Marines tracked the fleeing insurgents through several homes, eventually leading to a home Chessani ordered attacked.

"The followup showed one of the insurgents escaped, hid in a house, and Col. Chessani ordered the house surrounded. When he [the insurgent] finally came out, he was carrying a baby, with a family around him," Rooney said.

At the time the attack happened, the case was investigated through the Marine chain of command with no allegation of inappropriate action. But then months later, a Time magazine story, "planted by an insurgent propaganda agent," according to the law firm, raised the profile of that particular battle, prompting Murtha to make his public accusation that Marines murdered civilians in "cold blood."

The actual court-martial for Chessani is scheduled to start April 28, 2008.

Chessani, who grew up in Rangely, Colo., and graduated from the University of Northern Colorado, was one of eight originally accused in the case.

Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum also has been ordered to be court-martialed and the case against Cpl. Andrew Grayson also remained pending, as does the case against Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, although the charges against him were reduced.

Two other officers, Capts. Randy Stone and Lucas McConnell, have had their charges dismissed. Charges against Sgt. Sanick P. Dela Cruz also were dismissed, as were charges against Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt.

Related special offers:

"Muhammad's Monsters"

Definitive work on Mideast ? available only here!

"Christianity and the American Commonwealth"

Arraignment set for Marine condemned by Murtha

Trial set for Haditha vet targeted by Murtha

Murtha cornered over Haditha charges

Haditha Marine's hearing called 'sham'

Court-martial recommended for Haditha Marine officer

Marine officer under fire gets support on 2 fronts

Marine hopes hearing will remove 'Murtha taint'

Testimony leaves Murtha allegations wilting