April 22, 2010 12:41 PM
The family of a Navy SEAL who grew up in Blue Island rejoiced today after a U.S. military jury cleared him of failing to prevent the beating of an Iraqi prisoner.
The mother of Petty Officer 1st Class Julio Huertas said she was elated by the verdict and always had faith that her son would be proven innocent.
"I'm very happy because everything is finished," Olivia Huertas said from her home in Lake Worth, Fla. "I can't explain how I feel. I say, 'thank you God.' Everything is fine and he'll come back to his home."
Julio Huertas, 28, grew up in Blue Island and graduated from Dwight D. Eisenhower High School, his mother said.
Shortly after he enlisted in the Navy, his parents retired and moved to Florida.
As he left the courthouse at the U.S. military's Camp Victory in Baghdad, Huertas said he planned to continue his military career and "go home and kiss my wife."
"Compared to all the physical activity we go through, this has been mentally more challenging," he said of the trial.
In Florida home, his mother described how worried the family had been.
"I wait every day" for answers, she said. "This morning, he called to my home and told me and my husband. He was very tired about everything, but thanking God."
Olivia Huertas said her son was unwavering about his desire to continue serving.
"He loves what he's doing," she said. "He said, 'I'm staying in the Navy.'"
Huertas was one of three Navy SEALs placed on trial in connection to the alleged assault of Iraqi prisoner, Ahmed Hashim Abed. Abed is suspected of masterminding a 2004 attack that killed four American security contractors, officials said.
Abed testified on the opening day of the trial that he was beaten by U.S. troops while hooded and tied to a chair.
The case stems from an attack on four Blackwater security contractors who were driving through Fallujah, west of Baghdad in early 2004. The four security contractors' burned bodies were dragged through the streets and two were hanged from a bridge over the Euphrates River in the former insurgent hotbed of Fallujah. The incident was considered a turning point in the Iraq war.
The images of the bodies hanging from the bridge drove home to many the rising power of the insurgency. It led to a bloody U.S. invasion of the city to root out insurgents later that year.
The trial of Huertas and two other SEALs in the abuse case outraged many Americans who saw it as coddling terrorists. All three SEALs could have received only a disciplinary reprimand, but insisted on a military trial to clear their names and save their careers.
During the trial, Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Kevin DeMartino testified that he saw one SEAL punch the prisoner in the stomach and saw blood spurt from his mouth. DeMartino was assigned the duty of processing the prisoner and transporting him. He said Huertas and another SEAL were in the narrow holding room at the time of the assault.
But defense attorneys cast doubt on the beating, showing photographs of Abed after the alleged beating where he had a visible cut inside his lip but no obvious signs of bruising or injuries anywhere else.
In her closing arguments, Huertas' civilian defense attorney, Monica Lombardi, pointed out inconsistencies between DeMartino's testimony and other witnesses. She reminded the jury that the prisoner, Amed, was still facing terrorism charges. She said he could not be trusted and could have inflicted wounds on himself as a way of blaming American troops.
"There was no abuse," she said in court. "This is classic terrorist training."
After two hours of deliberation, a six-man jury found Huertas innocent of charges of dereliction of duty and attempting to influence the testimony of another service member.
After the verdict, Lombardi said the jurors decided as they did because there were too many inconsistencies and because they didn't believe the prisoner.
Prosecutors refused to comment after the verdict. But in his closing argument, Lt. Cmdr. Jason Grover said the SEALS were itching for payback after the killings of the Blackwater guards. Two of the guards were former Navy SEALs.
The court martial of Petty Officer 2nd Class Jonathan Keefe, of Yorktown, Virginia, is scheduled to begin at Camp Victory on Friday. He is also charged with dereliction of duty on allegations that he failed to protect the prisoner.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew McCabe, of Perrysburg, Ohio, is scheduled to be court-martialed May 3 in Virginia. He is accused of assaulting the prisoner.
--Lolly Bowean and the Associated Press
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment