50cal

Sniper cleared of manslaughter in Iraq shootings



By Chelsea J. Carter - The Associated Press
Posted : August 04, 2008

SAN DIEGO — Charges have been dismissed against a Camp Pendleton Marine sniper accused in the shooting deaths of two Syrians in Iraq, Marine officials said July 24.
The charges against Sgt. John Winnick II were dismissed without prejudice by the commanding general of I Marine Expeditionary Force, meaning charges could be brought again at a later time.
Winnick, 24, was charged with two counts of voluntary manslaughter and failing to adhere to the military’s rules of engagement by firing without reasonable certainty that his targets were hostile.
“In light of all of the circumstances, the commanding general has determined Sergeant Winnick’s actions do not warrant referral of the charges to a military justice forum,” Marine spokesman Mike Alvarez said.
Alvarez said he didn’t know why Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland left the door open for possible future prosecution.
An investigating officer recommended that Winnick face a lesser charge of dereliction of duty for the June 17, 2007, shooting in Iraq’s western Anbar province.
“This is the first I’m hearing of it,” said Winnick’s attorney, Gary Myers, when asked for reaction to the dismissal.
“We are obviously pleased, and it was the correct result,” he said.
Myers said Winnick, of Del Mar, Calif., was not immediately aware of the dismissal of charges but believed he would be “relieved” by the news.
“Now he can go back to being a Marine,” he said.
Winnick was a team leader for a scout-sniper team with Camp Pendleton-based 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, when a soda delivery truck stopped near the team’s hideout on a busy road where roadside bombs were a common threat.
During an Article 32 hearing to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to send the Marine to court-martial, Winnick testified that he shot the men in the truck because he believed he was protecting his comrades.
Winnick’s comrades testified the Marine fired a fatal sniper round at a man who hopped out of the cab, removed a container or bag from a side compartment, and appeared to begin digging at the ground. Winnick then killed a second man with a shotgun after the team stormed out of its hiding place, they testified.
After a Marine with the quick-response force opened a rear door to the delivery truck and saw soda bottles, a report to the battalion commander indicated that there was no roadside bomb, his team members said.
Winnick was fired as the team leader after the incident, and a senior commander levied charges against him. The other five Marines involved got adverse Page 11 entries in their record books for allegedly failing to get positive identification of the threat.
Lt. Col. Phillip Chandler, the battalion commander, also pulled engagement authority from the teams, removing the team leader’s ability to independently decide when to shoot, placing it at the battalion headquarters instead.
Winnick’s team members defended him, saying during the Article 32 hearing that the rules of engagement were confusing, and the situation looked threatening.
“It was really suspicious,” Sgt. Alexander Wazenkewitz said. “From what it looked like, the guy was laying an improvised explosive device,” he said. “This was definitely a threat.”
Cpl. Justin Governale, who accompanied Winnick on the assault, said when the team reached the truck, a fifth man was crawling toward a cell phone.
“I’m thinking, the truck is a huge bomb and the guy is reaching for his cell phone to press a button,” Governale said. The Marine added that he heard a shot, and “the threat had been eliminated.”
Winnick, who is now assigned to I MEF’s headquarters group, had faced up to 40 years in prison and dishonorable discharge if convicted on all counts, which also included aggravated assault against two truck passengers who were injured in the fight.

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"Sweat dries, blood clots, bones heal. Suck it up. Be a Marine"

Mud_Woman

thats crazy

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