Prosecutor says officer at Haditha lied

By: MARK WALKER - Staff Writer
Conflict may force rescheduling of hearing for 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson | Wednesday, November 14, 2007 9:30 AM PST ∞

CAMP PENDLETON -- A Marine intelligence officer failed to investigate the slaying of 24 Iraqi civilians in the city of Haditha two years ago and later lied to investigators, a prosecutor charged Tuesday.

The prosecutor, Lt. Col. Paul Atterbury, made the accusations during a brief opening statement at a hearing to determine if 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson will be ordered to trial on charges of dereliction of duty, obstruction of justice and making a false statement.

That determination may be delayed, however, because of a conflict that surfaced late Tuesday afternoon: The Marine officer presiding over the case, Lt. Col. Tracy Daly, said he is a friend of a key government witness.

That prompted a demand from Grayson's attorney that Daly step down and a new presiding officer be appointed, a process that could delay the hearing for several weeks or more.

Grayson is one of four officers charged with failing to investigate the killings that took place at the hands of a Camp Pendleton squad on Nov. 19, 2005. The battalion commander at Haditha, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, faces trial in April for dereliction of duty.

Nineteen of the civilians were killed inside their homes after the squad searched for those responsible for a roadside bomb that killed one Marine and injured two others.

Grayson is the last of eight Marines charged with crimes arising from the incident to appear in court for an Article 32 hearing, a process akin to a probable cause hearing.

The obstruction charge alleges the 26-year-old ordered the destruction of photographs of the slain civilians.

As part of its case against Grayson, Atterbury said the government will show the Ohio native also was aware of a Haditha town council conclusion that the killings constituted a war crime. The council issued a formal demand for a probe a few days after the killings.

Grayson's attorney, Joseph Casas, contended in his opening statement that his client was never at the scene of the killings and that his job was not to investigate civilian deaths but to gather intelligence and find out who was killing Marines.

Grayson, who had several relatives in the courtroom, said little other than to identify himself and say who he wanted to represent him. He faces up to 19 years in prison if convicted on all those counts and sentenced to the maximum punishment.

The Haditha killings spawned an international outcry when they came to light in early 2006, after a Time magazine reporter who had spoken with relatives of the slain Iraqis began asking questions.

Until then, Marine Corps officials had said the incident in the city, which lies 150 miles northwest of Baghdad on the Euphrates River, was the direct result of Marines being attacked.

Marine Corps officials have said the commanders at Haditha made an initial erroneous determination that some of the civilians died in the bombing and the others were caught in crossfire.

Two major investigations were launched three months after the killings, one conducted by the Army into how Marine officers reviewed and reported the incident, and another that examined the actions of the men responsible for the killings.

The twin probes resulted in four enlisted men being charged with murder and four officers, including Grayson, being charged with dereliction of duty and related offenses.

Since those charges were lodged on Dec. 21 of last year, charges against two of the enlisted men have been dropped. A third has been ordered to trial on involuntary manslaughter and related charges.

The squad leader of the men responsible for the killings, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, has been recommended to go to court-martial on seven counts of negligent homicide. He was originally charged with 17 counts of murder.

Tuesday's hearing ended abruptly after Daly said he had a close friendship with an Army major the government plans to call to help prove its case.

That prompted Casas to ask that Daly step down as presiding officer, and after hearing arguments on the issue, the lieutenant colonel agreed there is at least the appearance of a conflict of interest.

"My recommendation is that I grant the defense request to recuse myself," he said.

A final decision on whether Daly will step aside is expected when the hearing reconvenes in a base courtroom at 1 p.m.

The conflict wasn't recognized until Tuesday because the witness list wasn't shared with Daly until shortly after the hearing started. It was not immediately clear why he hadn't seen the list sooner.

-- Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.

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