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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

No charges for Marine in Haditha deaths

Los Angeles Times The Spokesman-Review

Involuntary manslaughter charges were dropped Friday against a 27-year-old Marine lance corporal who had faced trial for crimes stemming from the Marine killings of 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq, in 2005.

Stephen B. Tatum, who also no longer faces charges of reckless endangerment and aggravated assault, will be compelled to testify in the court-martial of Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, his former squad leader.

Wuterich led the assault on two houses where most of the deaths occurred. Tatum’s attorneys said their client, accused of killing two children in the incident, will testify, but no deal has been made with prosecutors about what he will say.

“It became clear to the experienced prosecution team that the right thing to do was dismiss all charges,” said Tatum’s defense team, consisting of two civilian attorneys and two Marines attorneys.

Initially, murder charges were levied against four enlisted Marines for the shootings and four officers for allegedly not investigating properly. Tatum, of Edmond, Okla., is the third of the enlisted to have charges dropped.

The civilians were killed after a Marine convoy was attacked by a roadside bomb. One Marine was killed and two injured.

Ordered to “clear” houses for possible insurgents, Marines killed 19 civilians. Five others were killed outside their car. No evidence was found linking any of the dead to the roadside attack, according to prosecutors.

The decision to drop charges against Tatum was approved by Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland, commander of Marine Force Central Command. Tatum was a veteran of the fighting in Fallujah in late 2004.

At a preliminary hearing, Tatum asserted in an unsworn statement that the light was so poor inside the houses that he saw only shapes and that he fired after hearing the racking of AK-47s.