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| Lance Cpl. Justin I. Sharratt carrys documentation into his Investigation hearing at Camp Pendleton on Monday. Sharratt is one of four enlisted Marines who were charged with violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for the alleged unpremeditated murder of Iraqi civilians following an improvised explosive device and small arms attack on a Marine convoy in Haditha, Iraq on Nov. 19, 2005.
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CAMP PENDLETON ---- A Marine lance corporal accused of three counts of murder for his role in the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha said Thursday he did nothing wrong.
Special Report
The killings were not murder but rather resulted from self-defense as he fought to stay alive, Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt told a hearing officer in a courtroom on Camp Pendleton.
Reading from a prepared statement, Sharratt said two of three men he killed inside a home following a roadside bombing the morning of Nov. 19, 2005, were pointing AK-47 assault rifles at him.
"We did not execute any Iraqi men," Sharratt said in a clear and strong voice as his parents, Darryl and Theresa Sharratt, watched with rapt attention. "When the insurgent pointed at me from behind the door, I shot him in the head."
After that, he said he heard the sounds of an AK-47 being "racked" or prepared for fire, prompting him to enter the room and shoot that man.
A third man died as he emptied his 9mm pistol into the room shortly before noon, Sharratt said.
"I kept firing until I used my magazine because I did not know if they had body armor or suicide vests," he said.
Backing Sharratt during the attack was Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, who is charged with killing a fourth man in the room. All the Iraqis were later determined to be brothers.
Sharratt began his remarks Thursday by talking about his 2003 enlistment, his training and the house-to-house combat he would face in the fall of 2004 during a battle for the city of Fallujah. That city, like Haditha, is an insurgent stronghold in the Anbar province west of Baghdad.
A year after Fallujah, Sharratt was sent to Iraq for a second time with Camp Pendleton's 3rd battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
'Exactly what I was supposed to do'
The 22-year-old rifleman said that on the night of Nov. 18, 2005, he and fellow platoon members were told they were going to escort a contingent of Iraqi soldiers to a roadside checkpoint the next morning.
About 10 minutes into the trip, a roadside bomb was detonated, destroying a Humvee in the four-vehicle convoy, killing Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas and injuring two others.
Sharratt said he immediately heard small arms fire being directed toward the convoy. He said the fire was evidence to him of a "complex and coordinated attack."
After establishing security around the site of the bombing, he two other Marines eventually established a watch post atop the roof of a nearby home, Sharratt said. From that vantage point, he said the troops saw two Iraqi men darting between two houses, prompting them to investigate.
It was while searching for those men that he and Wuterich entered the last of four homes where civilians would die that day.
Sharratt stressed that all of his actions were in concert with his training.
"I am a disciplined Marine," he said. "On Nov. 19, I did exactly what I was supposed to do."
After determining all the Iraqis in the room were dead, Sharratt said said he and Wuterich removed two AK-47s and a suitcase containing Jordanian passports. He said he gave those items to a fellow Marine and never again saw the weapons or suitcase.
Sharratt also quoted what he said is an oft-heard remark among the Marines in Iraq when they talk about possible consequences of their actions.
"I'd rather be tried by a jury of 12 of my peers than carried in a casket by six of my friends," he said.
He concluded his remarks by thanking his parents for all their support, drawing tears from each as they watched their son from the front row of a base courtroom.
Sharratt's remarks were made in the form of an unsworn statement, meaning it was not under oath and he was not subject to any questioning by prosecutors.
Witness: No small arms fire heard
Earlier Thursday, a Marine who was with Sharratt at Haditha testified that he never heard any small arms fire following the bombing.
Testifying on the fourth day of the hearing, Lance Cpl. Trent Graviss said he never heard shots consistent with AK-47 fire, the weapon commonly used by insurgents.
The Marines charged in the civilians killings have maintained that the bombing was followed by an attack of small arms fire, leading them to assault four homes resulting in 19 Iraqi deaths, including several women and children.
The others to die were five men who emerged from a car that drove up moments after the bombing, a shooting that Graviss said he partially witnessed.
Also testifying this morning was Lt. Col. Elizabeth Rouse, a forensic pathologist and medical examiner, who said photographs of the four men from the house that Sharratt's case arises from showed head wounds from shots that came from at least two feet away. No autopsies were conducted on any of the bodies and relatives would not allow U.S. authorities to exhume any remains for examination.
Rouse's testimony would seem to controvert statements given to investigators by survivors of the men, who contend they were herded into the room and killed execution style.
Sharratt's case is the first of the accused shooters at Haditha to reach court. When it concludes, the hearing officer, Lt. Col. Paul Ware, will write a report stating whether he believes there is sufficient evidence to order the 22-year-old Sharratt to trial.
The hearing is expected to end Friday.
Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.