On March 17, 2009, the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals (NMCCA) unanimously upheld the dismissal of all charges against USMC Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani. Like those who sat in judgment of Chessani’s criminal trial, the appeals court found exactly what those of us who stood by him already knew back when this witch hunt began; That this case was indeed tainted by the foul stench of Unlawful Command Influence (UCI), the mortal enemy of military justice. It was not a fair trial.

The clock is ticking. The persecution now has until April 16th and four choices for how to respond:

1. Persecutors can ask for reconsideration of the dismissal verdict.
2. Persecutors can ask for an en banc decision of the entire Navy/Marine Corp Court of Criminal Appeals.
3. Persecutors can appeal to the Court of Appeal for the Armed Forces(CAAF); the next higher court.
4. Or, the persecution can start over from the beginning and seek a new Convening Authority to decide whether to re-file the original charges.

The facts of this case, and all eight of the Haditha cases, speak for themselves. There was no massacre, only an ambush and firefight in which unfortunate residents of Haditha were caught in the middle. The Marines of 3/1 Kilo Co. reacted as they were instructed. But due to political pressure to end the war, seven Marines and their Commanding Officer were lynched by Time Magazine’s Tim McGirk and members of Congress after a sham trial in the court of public opinion.

Jeffrey Chessani’s struggle has dragged on for four years. Despite the prosecutorial suppression of mountains of exculpatory evidence, the charges were ultimately dismissed. The large number of prejudicial statements and leaks by politicians and media mouthpieces irreparably tainted the case and resulted a finding of perceived (apparent) UCI and that finding has now been upheld on appeal. But the nightmare that has haunted this outstanding Marine is not yet over and Jeffrey Chessani has not yet been extricated from under the bus. His defense team at the Thomas More Law Center believe, as do I, that the stage is set for his ongoing persecution. Given the recent history of the Navy/Marine Corps JAG/NCIC, those fears are well-founded:

• USMC Lance Corporal William Walden was convicted in 1999 for driving a motor vehicle on base without a valid driver’s license, violating a lawful general order by wrongfully possessing pocket knives with blades in excess of three inches and obtaining telephone services using false pretenses by misusing another Marine’s calling card number. He was sentenced to 45 days confinement, reduction to pay grade E-1, forfeiture of $600.00 pay per month for three months and a bad-conduct discharge. Walden’s case was still under appeal as of December of 2008. After nearly a decade, the appeals court ruled in Walden’s favor, finding that excessive and unexplained delay violated his constitutional rights.
• USMC Sgt. Brian Foster was convicted in 1999 of raping his wife, solely upon her testimony. Her accusations came nearly five years after the alleged incident. Foster was sentenced to 17 years confinement, loss of pay, reduction in rank and a dishonorable discharge. In February 2009, NMCCA set aside the conviction with prejudice, due to the complete lack of evidence and ordered Foster’s immediate release.

The reason I mention the Walden and Foster cases, is to show that the government has a very large budget, vast resources, plenty of time, and a gaggle of overzealous prosecutors in the JAG Corps who tend to engage in ”losing” documents, leaking to the media and other misconduct when their legal theories are threatened. If they can drag Walden and Foster out for decades, it can happen to Chessani.

Jeffrey Chessani had an exemplary record. He was on his third tour in Iraq as Battalion Commander for Staff Sergeant Wuterich and his men. He wasn’t even present that day in November of 2005. And when the first investigation revealed that Chessani’s Marines acted appropriately, the second found fault with the way these men were trained and how they applied target identification training and Rules of Engagement. If at first, you don’t succeed…try, try again.

Imagine you are charged with crimes as serious as homicide, or dereliction of duty. Imagine further that your interrogator has a 30-year relationship with another man who will decide whether you are tried or set free. Finally, imagine that your interrogator, well-respected by many in military legal circles, was also present at strategy sessions where issues such as whether you would be charged and how you would be tried were discussed.

The entire Haditha case has fallen apart. The decision to dismiss charges against Jeffrey Chessani is the correct one. And the righteousness of that decision has now been reaffirmed. The time to end the politically-motivated prosecutions of Jeffrey Chessani and Frank Wuterich and begin the immediate jailing of John Murtha is long overdue.

Technorati Tags: brian rooney, col. john ewers, Iraq, John Murtha, loac violations, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich, the bargewell report, the watt report, Thomas More Law Center, Tim McGirk, UCMJ, US military