LOS ANGELES (AFP) — The court martial against a lieutenant with the US Marines on charges of lying following the deaths of 24 civilians in the Iraqi town of Haditha in 2005 opened on Wednesday, a Marine spokesman told AFP.
First Lieutenant Andrew Grayson, 26, is being court martialed for making false statements, obstructing justice, and attempting to fraudulently separate from the Corps, the Marines said.
The court martial is taking place at the vast Marine Corps base at Camp Pendleton, 130 kilometers (80 miles) south of Los Angeles.
Grayson is one of eight soldiers and officers who were initially charged with crimes in connection with the November 2005 incident, which saw men, women and children shot dead by Marines in the aftermath of a roadside bombing.
Four soldiers faced murder charges and four officers, including Grayson, were accused of covering-up and failing to properly investigate the killings.
However, since charges were first announced in December 2006, prosecutors have struggled to make the allegations stick.
Five of the eight men have now had charges against them dropped, while charges of murder were replaced by the lesser offense of manslaughter in the case of squad leader Frank Wuterich, who faces trial later this year.
The killings in Haditha are the most serious war crime allegations leveled at US forces since the 2003 invasion to topple Saddam Hussein, and is one of several cases involving Marines from Camp Pendleton.
The case against Grayson is expected to last at least one week.
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