A military judge released a Marine from Camp Pendleton who has been serving an 11-year sentence for murder in a major Iraq war crimes case, nearly two months after a military appeals court threw out his conviction and ruled he had an unfair trial.
Sergeant Lawrence Hutchins will remain free while a higher court decides whether to affirm or overturn the April ruling, which is being appealed by the Navy.
Monday’s surprise decision marked a second major blow for the government’s prosecution of US troops accused of killing unarmed Iraqis.
Hutchins was convicted of killing a 52-year-old Iraqi man who was dragged out of his home by the Marine’s squad. His attorney, Captain Babu Kaza, argued the married father of a five-year-old girl is not a flight risk or a threat to society.
Kaza said he and Hutchins, both Roman Catholics, prayed with a rosary at Monday’s hearing before the judge announced his decision.
After being released, Hutchins packed his bags, then got a ride from Kaza to a Taco Bell for dinner.
“I’m going to be the best Marine I can be today,” an elated Hutchins said in an exclusive phone interview following his release. “Today is really a surreal experience. I think we had a good judge … It’s hard to describe exactly what I’m feeling. I’m happy.”
Hutchins said he called his family immediately after the hearing to tell them he will see them soon. He was preparing to call his daughter, Kylie, next.
“I’m going to tell her she’s my little princess, of course,” he said.
Prosecutors could not be immediately reached for comment after the hearing on Monday evening.
Attorneys for the government say Hutchins led a squad of seven troops who killed the man in the Iraqi village of Hamdania in 2006, and then planted a shovel and AK-47 to make it appear he was an insurgent.
The US Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals in Washington ruled Hutchins was not given a fair trial because his lead attorney left the case shortly before his 2007 trial.
The case is now in the hands of the US Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, which can either affirm or overturn the Washington court’s ruling.
Hutchins, 26, says he was not with his squad at the time. The others in his squad served less than 18 months. He said his squad told him they had killed an insurgent leader, and he did not learn of the mistake until after the investigation.
The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces is expected to hear arguments this fall and could take until next year to make a decision.
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