Marine panel convenes to consider demotion for officer over 2005 Iraqi killings

Marine officer could face demotion in Iraq deaths

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — A Marine officer suspected of not investigating the deaths of 24 Iraqi men, women and children is being accused of not visiting the scene for 24 hours and submitting incomplete and inaccurate reports to his superiors.

Lt. Col. Paul Atterbury, a government attorney, also told a military panel that Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani resisted an investigation even after leaders in Haditha, Iraq, met with Marines and alleged war crimes.

The allegations came Wednesday after the panel convened to determine if Chessani should be demoted in retirement for dereliction of duty — a move that could hurt his pension and other benefits.

Chessani had been charged with dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the 2005 killings. However, a judge dismissed the charges because of improper contact between a general and investigator.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (AP) — A Marine Corps colonel overseeing a demotion hearing for an officer accused of failing to investigate the deaths of 24 Iraqi men, women and children considered Wednesday whether photos of the dead people should be allowed as evidence.

The administrative hearing for Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani of Rangeley, Colo., began at Camp Pendleton four years after the 2005 killings of the men, women and children in Haditha, Iraq.

A three-member military panel will determine if Chessani should be demoted in retirement, which his civilian attorney said could cost him and his wife a half-million dollars in lost pension, health and retirement benefits. The couple is expecting their seventh child.

Chessani had been charged with dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the killings, which occurred after one Marine was wounded and two others killed by a roadside bomb.

However, a judge at Camp Pendleton dismissed the charges because of improper contact between a general overseeing the case and an investigator. The Marines announced in April they would not pursue further criminal charges.

The hearing began with questions for the panel and legal arguments over whether the government could introduce evidence that includes photos of the dead, interviews with troops who witnessed or were involved in the incident, and videotaped statements.

Col. Kurt Brubaker, a military judge overseeing the panel, rejected a defense challenge to one of the panelists, Brig. Gen. Lewis A. Craparotta.

Craparotta said during questioning by the defense that in his division, the battalion commander had to investigate any report of civilian killings — a statement that would make him biased against Chessani, said Lt. Col. Jon Shelburne, Chessani’s military attorney.

The panel will hear opening statements later in the day then retire to review a number of documents before taking witness testimony beginning Dec. 7.

If the board finds no wrongdoing, the case will be closed. If it finds misconduct, it can recommend that the secretary of the Navy order Chessani retired at a lesser rank.

Chessani’s civilian attorney Brian Rooney said his client faces demotion to major, which would be a financial blow.

“There’s a sense of fairness that all Marines have, and typically these (hearings) are seen as unfair,” Rooney said. “If you can’t get a guy criminally, it’s seen as taking another bite of the apple.”

Chessani’s wife sat in the front row reading from a Bible during the hearing and was flanked by about a dozen supporters.

Murder counts have been dismissed or withdrawn against four enlisted troops, and charges also were dismissed or withdrawn for three other officers accused of mishandling the case.

Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich is expected in military court early next year to face nine counts of manslaughter. He has pleaded not guilty.

Wuterich and a squad member allegedly shot five men by a car at the scene. Investigators say Wuterich then ordered his men to clear several houses with grenades and gunfire, leaving women and children among the dead.