Washblog

Judge declares a mistrial in the Watada case

By Pen
Thu Feb 08, 2007 at 12:50:45 AM PST
Section: Diary Topic: Military

Military judge Lt. Col. John Head declared a mistrial Wednesday because he felt Lt. Ehren Watada did not understand a document he had signed in which he admitted that he had a duty to go to Iraq with his fellow soldiers.  Watada has testified that he only intended to admit that he would not go to Iraq, not that he had a duty to do so.  This strikes to the core of the Watada defense, the defense that judge Head has illegaly denied the Lt.  Judge Head, in an evident attempt to aid and abet war crimes, has ruled that Watada cannot argue that the war is illegal.  Watada's defense is that he is duty bound NOT to go to Iraq.  Therefore, to admit he has a duty TO go to Iraq would contradict his own defense.

So when Watada testified today that he did NOT understand he was admitting to a duty to go to Iraq, the entire can of worms the judge had tried to avoid ran headlong into the prosecutions case.  Call Watada on it and the Lt. STILL gets to strike to the heart of the entire case:  It is BY LAW a soldiers legal DUTY to refuse to obey an illegal order including participating in an illegal war.  If Watadas defense team can just put that fact out there, the prosecution is then bound to refute it.  They can't, therefore the document that represented the bulk of the prosecutions case is now worthless.

THIS is the thing the judge wanted to avoid. Now things could get even messier for Watada however.

Watada's lawyer now wants the case dismissed, claiming that a second trial amounts to double jeopardy.  If he is successful, the military could just defuse the entire thing.  Totally avoid the controversy.  This is unlikely as the Judge Advocate Generals office has said that double jeopardy does not apply.

Then there's the opposite possibility.  in return for Watada signing that document, a 12 page stipulation of fact, the prosecution agreed to drop two charges of conduct unbecoming an officer.  The prosecution can now tack back on those two charges and Watada could be facing even more prison time.

One way or the other, the military is trying to dodge the very issue of a soldiers OBLIGATION to refuse to obey illegal orders.  You can be assured that they will find a way around the loss of those documents somehow.

But at least all this buys us more time to rally the public around Lt. Watada and spread the word about what he stands for.

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Judge declares a mistrial in the Watada case | 5 comments (5 topical)
Youtube clip of Watada's attny explaining
Hat tip to United for Peace of Pierce County

by noemie maxwell on Thu Feb 08, 2007 at 09:19:55 AM PST

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List of reports on mistrial
Pen, your account is as good as the information that is out there just now.  I left a comment with long list of links to the many reported accounts at Noemie's sidebar diary 'Mistrial in Watada case'.

I wasn't picking and choosing between your story or Noemie's story; more wanted to leave a list of the many accounts at one or the other and saw Noemie's first. Posting to your story to tie the two stories at Washblog together plus have history of the additional reported accounts in other media.

On the Surge in Iraq "--we have set the bar so low it's buried in the sand at this point." - Barack Obama

by Lietta Ruger on Fri Feb 09, 2007 at 08:44:49 AM PST

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Judge declares a mistrial in the Watada case | 5 comments (5 topical)
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