Military jury weighs sentence for U.S. Navy SEAL for posing with dead prisoner

[July 03, 2019]  By Martry Graham

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - A military jury was set to decide on Wednesday whether to punish a U.S. Navy SEAL platoon leader who was acquitted of murdering a captured Islamic State fighter but convicted of unlawfully posing for pictures with the detainee's dead body.

The seven-member jury found Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, 39, not guilty on Tuesday of most of the charges against him, including allegations he fatally stabbed the badly wounded Iraqi captive in the neck and shot at unarmed civilians, two of them wounded by gunfire from a sniper's perch.

The single offense of posing for unofficial pictures with a human casualty, in this case the remains of the Iraqi whom Gallagher was acquitted of killing, carries a maximum sentence of four months' imprisonment.

Navy authorities said Gallagher gets credit for nearly seven months of time already served in pretrial custody, so he would presumably remain a free man. But he could receive other punishment, such as a demotion in rank and reduced pay.

Gallagher would have faced a possible life prison sentence had he been found guilty of murder or attempted murder.

Following Tuesday's verdict, the court was reconvened for a brief sentencing hearing, during which two friends of Gallagher testified on his behalf as character witnesses.

The jury also heard from two doctors who specialize in brain injuries. They said Gallagher suffered repeated concussions during his combat career, putting him at high risk of brain degeneration and visual impairments that will require ongoing medical attention.

Jurors were due to return on Wednesday to the courthouse at U.S. Naval Base San Diego to decide any penalties to be imposed.

Gallagher, who did not testify in his own defense and has declined public comment since the court-martial began, told reporters after Tuesday's proceedings, "I'm happy and thankful." He added: "Thank God, the legal team and my wife."

U.S. Navy SEAL Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher (R), with wife Andrea Gallagher, leaves court after being acquitted of most of the serious charges against him during his court-martial trial at Naval Base San Diego in San Diego, California , U.S., July 2, 2019. REUTERS/John Gastaldo

Gallagher insisted that disgruntled subordinates with no prior battlefield experience fabricated allegations against him over grievances with his leadership style and tactics.

U.S. President Donald Trump intervened in Gallagher's case months ago, ordering him moved from pretrial detention in a military brig to less restrictive confinement at a Navy base in recognition of the decorated veteran's "past service to our country."

The presiding judge later released Gallagher from custody altogether, in a rebuke to prosecutors for pretrial conduct the judge said infringed on Gallagher's right to fair proceedings.

The chief petty officer was arrested in 2018, more than a year after returning from his eighth overseas deployment in Mosul, in northern Iraq.

Defense lawyers argued that prosecutors lacked physical evidence to buttress their charges, and they presented several witnesses who contradicted the government's narrative in the case.

In a surprise blow to prosecutors during the first week of the trial, a Navy SEAL medic testified it was he, not Gallagher, who caused the death of the gravely injured prisoner by blocking his breathing tube, calling it a mercy killing.

Two defense witnesses - an Iraqi general and a U.S. Marine staff sergeant - later testified they never saw the Iraqi captive mistreated by anyone during the 20 minutes he spent alive in American custody.

(Reporting by Marty Graham in San Diego; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Michael Perry)

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