Court finds Navy's top lawyer influenced case against SEAL, waiting for other shoe to drop

sigfreund

Freethinker

posted

When I was in my teens I asked an NCO in my father’s unit whether it was better to be tried in a civilian court or a military one for an offense. His response was, “If it’s a minor charge, in a civilian court; if it’s a serious offense, a military one.” That was a very long time ago (~60 years) and many things had changed by the time I retired and more have changed since, but generally speaking I still agree with that assessment (and especially if one is not guilty of the charge).

There are incompetents and corrupt and dishonest people everywhere, including in the military, but I have observed far worse incompetence and corruption in the civilian criminal justice system than I ever did in the military. And that’s despite the fact that my observations were far more detailed and closer up in the military than what I’ve seen from the fringes of the civilian system. The military system isn’t perfect and free from all defects, but what human system is? That’s not to excuse its defects, but one swallow does not a summer make.

“I can’t give you brains, but I can give you a diploma.”
_{— The Wizard of Oz}

This life is a drill. It is only a drill. If it had been a real life, you would have been given instructions about where to go and what to do.

Posts: 47959 | Location: 10,150 Feet Above Sea Level in Colorado | Registered: April 04, 2002

Ignored post by sigfreund posted

rat2306

Member

posted

quote:
Originally posted by Citadel:
quote:
Originally posted by MikeinNC:
quote:

So the prosecutor didn’t want the cause of death to come out because they wanted to send Senior Chief to jail......these motherfuckers, each one of them from the prosecutor to the admiral and everyone in between need to immediately be arrested, reduced to O-1 and then discharged with a bad conduct discharge ensuring they will not get a retirement. This should include whomever originated the charges....what a shitshow. Talk about a railroading....

I would prefer E-1, Otherwise I'm good with all your suggestions.

And as a non-designated seaman recruit with immediate orders for sea duty; unit to be chosen by the SCPO.

Posts: 3484 | Location: Fairfax Co. VA | Registered: August 03, 2015

Ignored post by rat2306 posted

tacfoley

half-genius,
half-wit

posted

quote:
Originally posted by El Cid 92:
Respectfully, I don't think that civilian courts are emotionally/realistically equipped to deal with military's matters. UCMJ is similar to but different from civilian law.

And what would a court do if certain aspects of the case involve classified info - because that would end up in the public record.

There are many other limitations that are likely to come to light.

Andrew

Rape is a civil offence, not a military offence. Military matters are dealt with by military courts martial, and if found guilty, then the offender is sent to period of detention at the MCTC Colchester. If the offence warrants dismissal, then that will happen AFTER the time of detention has been completed. Most who go there return to their unit, chastened.

All three services are sent to the one corrective centre.

And BTW, I did not write that the British system was better that the US version, I wrote that it was more simple. Burglary is a civil offence, so the soldier/sailor/airman gets tried by a civil court, and serves a civil sentence. Since breaking civil law is an offence under the Army/Navy/Air Force Acts, at the discretion of the person's commanding officer, a decision may be made to require him or her to serve a term of detention in the MCTC after completing the civil detention. On completion of that they may then be dishonourably discharged the service.

Or not, if they have been suitably 'corrected'. However, I've never heard of anybody who served detention in both places being asked to stay on - enough people want to join who are not budding criminals, and the British Armed Forces can afford to be choosy.

Posts: 11497 | Location: UK, OR, ONT | Registered: July 10, 2003

Ignored post by tacfoley posted

V-Tail

אַרְיֵה

posted

quote:
Originally posted by corsair:
quote:
Originally posted by CQB60:
Crawford should lose his flag and be drumed out, lucky to receive retirement at a Captains salary...
Crawford and Lorge should be tried, reduced to O-6 and serve the same amount of jail time they issued to Barry.

Gross abuse of rank. Why O-6? Why not E-1?

הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים

Posts: 31708 | Location: Central Florida, Orlando area | Registered: January 03, 2010

Ignored post by V-Tail posted

corsair

Member

posted

quote:
Originally posted by V-Tail:
quote:
Originally posted by corsair:
quote:
Originally posted by CQB60:
Crawford should lose his flag and be drumed out, lucky to receive retirement at a Captains salary...
Crawford and Lorge should be tried, reduced to O-6 and serve the same amount of jail time they issued to Barry.
Gross abuse of rank. Why O-6? Why not E-1?

The brass likes to take care of their own, while reduction to O-1 or, even E-1 would be fantastic and set a clear example, the reality is, loosing a flag and all it's benefits, is pretty big deal.

Posts: 15195 | Location: Wine Country | Registered: September 20, 2000

Ignored post by corsair posted

corsair

Member

posted

Some interesting news regarding the OP topic

SMH...I get that the Navy retains a number of traditions with deep historical records, bread & water in the brig as an example, however, this guy was confined on land. Is this some institutional vindictiveness JAG put forward or, the brig guards being assholes? Secondarily, with the over-turning, is his legal-labeling as a sex-offender removed? Is it like recovering seized property & assets, another round of legal haggling/teeth-pulling with the legal authorities?

Navy retaliated against SEAL Keith Barry after refusing to sign paperwork admitting guilt, he says – Navy denies

quote:
Navy Seal Chief Keith Barry has been through hell and back. He was released from jail in 2017 after serving three years for a crime that he didn’t commit, after it was discovered that one of the top lawyers in the Navy personally tried to ensure he was found guilty.

But Barry has revealed a shocking new claim to American Military News: because he refused to sign Navy documents admitting his guilt while in jail, the Navy denied him his traumatic brain injury (TBI) medication and threw him in isolation.

“During my time incarcerated in [Naval Consolidated Brig Miramar in San Diego], I would not sign paperwork stating that I was guilty of the crime I was convicted of. By not signing it, I was immediately put in desegregation, or isolation, for 30 days,” Barry recalled. “More importantly, my medication that I had been on for several years for my TBI…;” he pauses. “I was cut off from that cold turkey.”

“Not only was I not being given any type of treatment or therapy, I was actually cut off from this medication while in isolation. I had no ability to cope with this,” he said. “I had buried 43 of my friends by the time I was 35, but I had reached a new hell.”

When asked for comment, the Navy denied that action was taken against Barry while he was in the brig.

“There was no action taken against Senior Chief Barry for refusing to sign documents while in the brig, and under no circumstances does the brig deny any prisoner access to prescribed medications,” Navy Personnel Public Affairs Officer Cdr. Karin Burzynski told American Military News.

Barry was charged with rape and later convicted of lesser charges by the U.S. Navy in 2014. He was sentenced to three years in prison. In an unprecedented turn of events four years later, Barry’s conviction was overturned and his case was dismissed; this after two appeals that had left him with no hope.

But it was finally brought to light that there had been unlawful command influence over the decision – meaning people in positions of power intentionally and illegally exerted their influence in order to pre-determine an outcome; in other words, it was about as corrupt as it could get.

Barry was reinstated into the U.S. military this past fall after being dishonorably discharged. He had also been required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life and was preparing to live out his days a convicted felon.

This was a traumatic turn of events for the Navy SEAL who had served his country for nearly two decades.

Barry, now 44, joined the Navy and went through BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training) when he was 22. By 2013, Barry had served 18 years as an active duty Navy SEAL and been on multiple combat deployments.

He was exposed to blast injuries over the course of eight deployments in Iraq, Barry explained, and had been diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury. He went to the west coast to serve out his “twilight tour” at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in San Diego Bay before retiring.

In January 2013, the act that his accuser would later allege was rape took place. Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) launched an investigation after his accuser brought forth the allegations, and in October 2014, after a 3-day court-martial, Barry was determined to be guilty of rape. He was jailed in Naval Consolidated Brig Miramar in San Diego on Halloween 2014.

He served two and a half years in jail before being released in 2017, six months early for good behavior. Out of jail, he was now a convicted felon and was expecting to have to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

He lived in hell for another 18 months – his second appeal had been rejected in the Navy and Marine Court of Appeal. There was virtually no hope at this point to right the wrong.

However, because of new information that someone was brave enough to bring forward to his legal team’s attention, Barry’s case had life again, he said – and so would he.

Three years after the conviction, and after two failed appeals, it was revealed in 2017 that the convening authority in his case had been pressured to rule against the evidence and to uphold the conviction against Barry in the post-trial clemency phase.

In September 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) threw out the charges and dismissed Barry’s case “with prejudice,” meaning the government can never renew the charges or take up the case again.

Barry was reinstated into the Navy at his last held rank, senior chief, and it was ordered that his back pay be restored, as well as his other privileges. He reported to Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in San Diego Bay while he was on active duty following his reinstatement.

Posts: 15195 | Location: Wine Country | Registered: September 20, 2000

Ignored post by corsair posted

Political Cynic
Picture of nhtagmember

posted

so whats the next major blow to the case against Gallagher?

_{[B] Against ALL enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC}

Posts: 54063 | Location: Tucson Arizona | Registered: January 16, 2002

Ignored post by nhtagmember posted

PeteF

Member

posted

quote:
Originally posted by nhtagmember:
so whats the next major blow to the case against Gallagher?

Prosecution witness admits no evidence of stab wound in Navy SEAL trial

https://www.foxnews.com/us/pro...eal-war-crimes-trial

So no stabbing and no killing of terrorist.
Persecuter is either totally incompetent, was forced into pressing charges that didn't exist, or is throwing the case.

Posts: 1107 | Location: New Jersey | Registered: August 16, 2009

Ignored post by PeteF posted

MikeinNC

semi-reformed sailor
Picture of MikeinNC

posted

quote:
Originally posted by PeteF:

Prosecution witness admits no evidence of stab wound in Navy SEAL trial

https://www.foxnews.com/us/pro...eal-war-crimes-trial

The corpsman suffocated the enemy soldier due to his his injuries and prevent further possible rape and torture from local population if he survived.

There was no stabbing

And I see from the article that there was no autopsy either...

Just what the fuck was going on here?

"Violence, naked force, has settled more issues in history than has any other factor.” Robert A. Heinlein

“You may beat me, but you will never win.” sigmonkey-2020

“A single round of buckshot to the torso almost always results in an immediate change of behavior.” Chris Baker

Posts: 11574 | Location: Temple, Texas! | Registered: October 07, 2006

Ignored post by MikeinNC posted

PeteF

Member

posted

quote:
Originally posted by MikeinNC:
quote:
Originally posted by PeteF:

Prosecution witness admits no evidence of stab wound in Navy SEAL trial

https://www.foxnews.com/us/pro...eal-war-crimes-trial

The corpsman suffocated the enemy soldier due to his his injuries and prevent further possible rape and torture from local population if he survived.

There was no stabbing

And I see from the article that there was no autopsy either...

Just what the fuck was going on here?

I can understand the no autopsy, its a third world shithole and dead guy was a bomb maker. Hes dead, all is well.

Now how the fuck charges can brought with no evidence is another story. My opinion is this is a "winning hearts and minds" prosecution. We wouldn't want to hurt the terrorists feelings after all.

Posts: 1107 | Location: New Jersey | Registered: August 16, 2009

Ignored post by PeteF posted

olfuzzy

Member

posted

Something would have to be very wrong with the system for them to get a conviction on this.

SAN DIEGO – The Iraqi general at the scene of an alleged murder of an Islamic State prisoner in Iraq in 2017 testified in a deposition video played in court Thursday that Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher never stabbed the teenage detainee. The recording was made earlier this month.

Maj. Gen. Abbas al-Jubouri testified that he never saw Gallagher stab the detainee in the neck. Gallagher served alongside Abbas’ unit in an advise and assist capacity in Mosul.

“At any time did you see Chief Gallagher take out the knife while he was treating the ISIS fighter?” asked Maj. Nelson Candelario, one of Gallagher’s military lawyers.

“No,” Abbas replied.

“You never saw him put the knife near the ISIS fighter’s neck?” “No,” he replied.

Abbas told the defense lawyer if had he witnessed improper conduct from SEALs, he would have taken action.

“I would have stepped in,” Abbas said.

“Had you seen Chief Gallagher do anything wrong…you would have reported it?” Candelario asked.

“Exactly,” Abbas replied. “I would have stopped him…I would be very upset.”

As commander of the Iraqi Emergency Response Division, Abbas said he was in the compound when the injured ISIS prisoner was brought in.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/edd...l-stab-isis-detainee

Posts: 5181 | Location: 20 miles north of hell | Registered: November 07, 2012

Ignored post by olfuzzy posted

Political Cynic
Picture of nhtagmember

posted

Any idea if there will be any progress on Monday and Tuesday?

I'd like to see him a free man on the 4th

I'd like to see everyone that railroaded him in custody and behind bars on the 4th

_{[B] Against ALL enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC}

Posts: 54063 | Location: Tucson Arizona | Registered: January 16, 2002

Ignored post by nhtagmember posted

leavemebe

Member

posted

quote:
I'd like to see him a free man on the 4th

I'd like to see everyone that railroaded him in custody and behind bars on the 4th

Yes!

____________________________

"It is easier to fool someone than to convince them they have been fooled." Unknown observer of human behavior.

Posts: 675 | Location: Virginia | Registered: July 13, 2009

Ignored post by leavemebe posted

LS1 GTO

The Unmanned Writer
Picture of LS1 GTO

posted

Just in on KOGO 600am -

they're reporting he was found not guilty on all charges except for the charge of posing for a pic with a dead combatant.

He'll be sleeping in his own bed tonight!!

Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

"If dogs don't go to Heaven, I want to go where they go" Will Rogers

The definition of the words we used, carry a meaning of their own...

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Ignored post by LS1 GTO posted

Political Cynic
Picture of nhtagmember

posted

that is awesome news

very happy to read this

_{[B] Against ALL enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC}

Posts: 54063 | Location: Tucson Arizona | Registered: January 16, 2002

Ignored post by nhtagmember posted

ChicagoSigMan

Now in Florida
Picture of ChicagoSigMan

posted

Glad for him and his family that this is over.

It does seem that this case has created a rift in the SEAL teams. I've never heard of SEALs speaking out against SEALs like we've seen in this case. I hope they can heal those wounds.

The SEAL medic admitted to the killing because he had immunity, but wouldn't it still be enough to get him booted from the Navy or at least the teams? He called it a mercy killing because he thought the kid would be brutally tortured by the Iraqis but I can't imagine it's allowed under the UCMJ.

Posts: 6084 | Location: FL | Registered: March 09, 2009

Ignored post by ChicagoSigMan posted

Political Cynic
Picture of nhtagmember

posted

there are lots of unanswered questions left behind

I hope charges get laid against the entire prosecution team as well as the command staff that tried to railroad an innocent person

_{[B] Against ALL enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC}

Posts: 54063 | Location: Tucson Arizona | Registered: January 16, 2002

Ignored post by nhtagmember posted

MikeinNC

semi-reformed sailor
Picture of MikeinNC

posted

I imagine the prosecutor played the other team members against Senior Chief Gallagher to get them to testify. Seems like a dirty prosecutor and dirty tricks to rail road someone.....if I was that guy, I wouldn’t sleep well knowing I tried to fuck over a tier one asset. Knowing I might wake up with my throat cut in my sleep.

Posts: 11574 | Location: Temple, Texas! | Registered: October 07, 2006

Ignored post by MikeinNC posted

spunk639

Member

posted

Great news for the Chief, hope the Big Navy doesn’t play games and reduce him to E-1 and screw with his discharge status. He’s served the maximum sentence in pre-trial detention.

Posts: 2888 | Location: Boston, Mass | Registered: December 02, 2000

Ignored post by spunk639 posted