New York Times reporter Dave Philipps joins Deadline White House panel to discuss the Navy SEALs' testimony against Eddie Gallagher. Thats the line of thinking seized by Gallaghers attorney, Parlatore. [5][6] He was trained as a medic, a sniper, and an explosives expert. We focused on trying to stop our chief from killing civilians, and getting us killed, while still affecting the battlespace and playing within the bounds of our own military and cultural rules. Eddie outing these people and the units they are in might be unprecedented in the SEAL community. But, the good comes with the bad. In a three-minute video posted to hisFacebook pageandInstagram accountMonday, retired Chief Special Operator Edward Gallagher, 40, referred to some members of his former platoon as cowards and highlighted names, photos and for those still on active duty their duty status and current units, something former SEALs say places those men and the Navys mission in jeopardy. After President Trump brought the issue up at a meeting with Chief of Naval Operations John M. Richardson, Admiral Richardson took up the request personally. "[citation needed], Gallagher was one of three military personnel accused or convicted of war crimes on whose behalf Trump had intervened to pardon or promote. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. But President Donald Trump reinstated his rating late last year. According to an April 20, 2018, NCIS interview with Lt. Cmdr. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. The LPO said during his interview that he confronted Gallagher and told him the guys are not good with what happened today. Gallagher asked, who had a problem, and the LPO said that, he personally had a problem with it, according to the report. Three other SEALs are slated to say their platoon chief took "random shots, sometimes into buildings, where he claimed to have killed someone, similar filings allege. And, lastly, there was this piece of sort of a bombshell development, where one of the prosecution's main witnesses, this medic who was there, says, after he saw Gallagher's stab the captive, it was he, the medic, who then killed the captive, not Gallagher. The accusations against Eddie were numerous, with the most prominent being the alleged murder of an Iraqi prisoner of war. @foxandfriends @RepRalphNorman", "Will Trump Go Nixonian With Clemency for War Criminals? Gallagher then text messaged a friend in California a picture of himself holding the dead captive's (ISIS) head by the hair with the explanation "Good story behind this, got him with my hunting knife.[9][13], Prosecutors alleged that Gallagher's sniper work during his 2017 deployment became "reckless" and "bloodthirsty". This is the reason that other countries call us to solve their problems. Three months ago, prosecutors argued that Gallagher spread numerous rumors about his teammates to members of the SEAL community, describing them as cowards who were afraid to go out on missions during deployment and went so far as to tell the new chain of command for teammates who had transferred, according to a filing provided to Navy Times. Our Iraqi interpreters told us horrific stories of the acts that ISIS committed. Green ordered Gallagher's case to be investigated by the Trident Review Board, in order to determine whether Gallagher should be stripped of his SEAL Trident insignia, the official symbol of certification within the Naval Special Warfare SEAL community. I like talking about fighter jets drawing sky penises and what smells reminds folks of the military. Almost immediately after seeing the group, one of the girls in a grey dress grabbed her stomach and fell to the ground after she was shot, the SO1 said. WebAnswer (1 of 13): I will admit out right that I havnt liked Eddie since he was my buddy Daves LPO. Gallagher had eight overseas deployments, including service in both the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan. (Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images). But piecing together all the interviews in mid-2018 and a round of re-interviews in October of the SEALs reveals multiple, sometimes competing, reasons for bringing Gallaghers alleged actions to the attention of his superiors and, later, law enforcement. "[53], After the verdicts, sentence and pardon, the New York Times revisited the case and accessed, using the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), investigative reports and also videos of interviews in which six SEALs under the command of Gallagher had separately extensively detailed his ongoing prohibited combat zone behavior, sometimes crying as they recounted the abuse. [5] Gallagher allegedly boasted about the large number of people he had killed, claiming he averaged three kills a day over 80 days, including four women. [43], Gallagher and his lawyers made an appeal for clemency at the conclusion of the court martial; such requests are frequently made, although rarely successful. Gallaghers case became a cause clbre in conservative circles, with President Trump championing his innocence. [30], On June 20, 2019, during Gallagher's trial, one of the platoon medics from Gallagher's team testifying as a prosecution witness said that although Gallagher did stab the ISIS fighter, he did not actually kill him. It's just wildly different than anything Eddie Gallagher related. Apparently, he sent a photograph of the captive's body. The SO1 sniper told Warpinski that on the day Gallagher allegedly murdered the prisoner of war, he had returned to the compound and found him speaking to an SO2 at a computer the platoon used to store photos and videos. There is a digital trove of evidence a mile long where Eddie violated dozens of articles of the UCMJ. These were part of Gallaghers effort to get a SEAL injured or killed so that we would, in his words, make it a great deployment. In the end, Gallagher showed us he wasnt our brother. Advertising InquiriesTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyContent PolicyMessaging Terms, AppAdvertising InquiriesTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyContent PolicyCookie PolicyBest Sports Betting SiteMessaging TermsSubscription Terms. Get back to business!" Gallagher was originally accused by fellow SEAL members, members of his own platoon, which, in and of itself, is sort of odd, given the historically tight-knit nature of the SEAL organization. But justified or not, whats clear to everyone is that they didnt like the mission. One of them said: "I have got a cool story for you when I get back. [54] "The guy is freaking evil," Special Operator First (SO1) Class Craig Miller said. People in intelligence communities are hesitant to take pictures at all because they fear that there might be a link back to their families one day. Report: Trump makes SEAL Gallagher a chief again, Committee votes on major defense policy bill expected in May, Military families share workout with first lady Jill Biden, US conducts first evacuation of its citizens from Sudan war, Ukrainian drones strike Crimea oil depot, Russian official says, Army identifies 3 soldiers killed in Alaska helicopter crash, Understanding the role of artificial intelligence, Mark Kitz keynote speech at the C4ISRNET conference, The latest on software, data and artificial intelligence, Army grounds helicopter fleet for force-wide safety stand down. But, on this last charge, the least serious of the seven charges, the jury decided to give him the maximum sentence, which is this four months in jail, and they reduced him in rank from a chief petty officer to a petty officer 1st class. He then says that he will share more details about the deployment and ends his video with the hashtag #THETRUTHISCOMING. The LPO told NCIS that he informed both Portier and his assistant officer in charge of the platoon about the alleged murder. 1996 - 2023 NewsHour Productions LLC. For more on this case, I am joined by Steve Walsh. These werent SEAL tactics. [29][21] During a podcast interview on May 28, 2019 Hunter said that he himself had posed for pictures with a dead enemy combatant and that American artillery fire had killed "hundreds" of Iraqi civilians in and around Fallujah. That had a significant impact on the battlefield. [7], During his service, he was decorated for valor several times, including two Bronze Stars. [8] On March 30, President Donald J. Trump intervened and ordered Gallagher transferred to "less restrictive confinement" after complaints from his supporters, particularly commentators on Fox and Friends, about his detainment. Eddie was definitely a pirate.. Another text said: "Good story behind this. He described Gallaghers knife as the same weapon the chief always carried in a leather sheath. [38] The jury gave Gallagher, who had already served the maximum prison time for this charge, a demotion from Chief Petty Officer (E-7) to Petty Officer First Class (E-6); this was lighter than other potential punishments, such as an Other Than Honorable (OTH) discharge, which were not handed down. Gallagher also was present when the prisoner received a trachea tube, two chest tubes and a Sternal Intraosseous Infusion, which bores through bone to reach veins when other IVs wont work, records indicate. Published Jan 25, 2022 9:00 AM EST. From other NCIS and Iraqi records provided to Navy Times, it can be pinpointed to May 3, 2017 less than a month after Alpha Platoon began their tour and the ICFM were members of the Iraqi Emergency Response Division, the Ministry of the Interiors elite special forces unit. At no time is loyalty to each other put over loyalty to the country and mission. A pirate is someone who is a little bit sloppier, messier, but is still a very effective fighter, Dylan Dille, another SEAL sniper and one of Gallaghers accusers, says in the first episode. He also told NCIS that Gallagher had shot at but missed another young girl in a previous incident. [16] The defense argued that Gallagher's text messages merely reflected dark comedy in a stressful situation, and that his more outrageous boasts, such as killing twenty people a day, were clearly impossible. The charges were lodged and prosecution depended heavily on statements made against Gallagher by platoon mates who deployed with him to Iraq to fight ISIS in 2017. The SO1 told Warpinski that at first, he thought Islamic State fighters were shooting civilians. Would we do something different if we could go back in time? [57], A limited television series adaptation based on the life of Gallagher is in development by Working Title Television and The New York Times with Will Staples to write. And I wanted to read what these texts say. Our deployment to Mosul in 2017 had the potential to be one of the most kinetic deployments in recent Naval Special Warfare history. [45], Following his acquittal, Gallagher spoke publicly about the case, appearing on Fox News without authorization, and using social media to describe his superiors, including Rear Admiral Collin P. Green, the newly installed commander of the SEALS, as "a bunch of morons". ", "Trump's war-crime pardons could be his most Nixonian moment yet", "Military judge frees Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher in advance of murder trial", "Judge Removes Prosecutor in Navy SEAL's War Crimes Court-Martial", "Judge removes prosecutor from Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher's war crimes case", "Trial of Navy SEAL accused of killing prisoner set for June", "Navy SEAL's trial for war crimes begins in San Diego", "Rep. Duncan Hunter says footage exonerates accused Navy SEAL, vows to seek Trump pardon", "Trump May Be Preparing Pardons for Servicemen Accused of War Crimes", "Trump's war-crime pardons would insult millions of service members", "Duncan Hunter's defense of accused Navy SEAL brings new scrutiny", "Navy SEAL Whose Testimony Roiled War-Crimes Trial May Face Perjury Charge", "The Navy Wants to Push Out Problem SEALs. He handed ISIS propaganda manna from heaven. That said, facts are facts. The LPO told NCIS that Gallagher later approached him and said hed killed four women today," alleged war crimes the SO1 said he repeated to Portier and another lieutenant. SEAL Team 1, SEAL Team 3, SEAL Team 5. If Gallaghers defense team is right, hell walk out of Naval Base San Diego a free man. Truth be known, I fucking hate talking about this kinda shit in the military community. [59][60][61], Basic Underwater Demolition/ SEAL (BUD/S), Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, "What motivated fellow SEALs to dime out Eddie Gallagher? [18][19] This was the first time a President directly intervened in an imprisonment conditions matter since President Richard Nixon intervened in favor of Lieutenant William Calley, one of the perpetrators of the My Lai Massacre, by ordering him released from a military brig to house arrest in 1971. The rest of his platoon was much younger. [9], During his eighth deployment in 2017, Gallagher's aggressiveness seemed to be amplified during the Battle for Mosul. The guy is freaking evil, Miller told the investigators. Nearly 50 minutes into his videotaped interview with NCIS, the SO1 sniper conceded that the SEALs had received intel reports that women were supplying weapons, water and food to Islamic State fighters, but he insisted he saw nothing like that through his scope. ", By Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter. When Gallagher was asked by host Pete Hegseth to offer his opinion, Gallagher opined: "this is all about ego and retaliation and this has nothing to do with good order and discipline. He insisted that he then saw the chief stab the ISIS fighter multiple times in the right side of the neck in a manner that was in no way a medical procedure, according to an NCIS report. Our senior leaders created the ethos to address moral failures that were happening at home and overseas during the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Got him with my hunting knife.". "The guy was toxic," said SO1 Joshua Vriens. So, in addition to having those SEALs, who I guess their testimony was simply not believed by the jury, there was also this piece of evidence of texts that Gallagher had sent to a fellow SEAL. Scott claimed it was an act of mercy. The request was initially rejected by Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar. For us, this was an easy fight to get behind. Gallagher was accused of several war crimes by some of his platoon subordinates, including that he shot civilians and stabbed a wounded ISIS fighter in the neck, killing him, while in Iraq in 2017. SEAL Team 1, SEAL Team 3, SEAL Team 5. He's been following the story for KPBS Public Media in San Diego, and he was there for the verdict and sentencing today. Uncompromising integrity is my standard. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. In a statement to the paper, Naval Special Warfare Command spokeswoman Capt. [10] Only after the reports gained visibility outside the SEAL community, were they acted upon and referred to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).[9]. Gallagher repeatedly sent us to positions where SEALs and our Iraqi partner forces were wounded or killed by small arms and rockets. So there was a feeling today that maybe Gallagher would serve no jail time at all, at least wouldn't get a sentence of any jail time. The only thing he was convicted of was posing in a photo with the dead captive's body. He will serve no further jail time. The accusations came from SEALs in Gallagher's own platoon, who said he was also known for taking shots at civilians from his sniper's nest, killing at least two. As it was supposedly being handled, we took matters into our own hands to attempt to stop our chief. Gallagher was the subject of a number of reports from fellow SEAL team members, stating that his actions were not in keeping with the rules of war, but these reports were dismissed by the SEAL command structure. The accusations against Eddie were numerous, with the most prominent being the alleged murder of an Iraqi prisoner of war. The decorated Navy SEAL had been accused stabbing the wounded teenage captive back in 2017. When our injured partners from the Iraqi Army flooded into our casualty collection point, our medics spent their free time saving their lives. If many of the allegations of the witnesses were untrue or embellished to depose Gallagher, they still worked until the claims hurdled SEAL Team 7 and reached Naval Special Warfare Group 1. [20][21], In May 2019, defense lawyers accused the prosecution of sending both them and Navy Times reporter Carl Prine an email that included a Web beacon. ", Duncan Hunter supports Gallagher, Trump in Navy SEAL controversy, "Trump says he stood up to the 'deep state' by intervening in war crime cases", Anguish and Anger From the Navy SEALs Who Turned In Edward Gallagher, "From the Brig to Mar-a-Lago, Former Navy SEAL Capitalizes on Newfound Fame", "Eddie Gallagher, Navy SEAL acquitted of stabbing wounded ISIS prisoner to death, tells his story", "Eddie Gallagher Limited Series In Works By Will Staples, Working Title & The New York Times", "Navy SEAL cleared of war crimes and reinstated by Trump now says 'we killed that guy', "Eddie Gallagher's shocking claim that SEALs intended for detainee to die", "Eddie Gallagher says he and other Navy SEALs used a dying enemy fighter for medical practice with no intention of saving him", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eddie_Gallagher_(Navy_SEAL)&oldid=1152104595, This page was last edited on 28 April 2023, at 06:51. We do our best but cant control the outcome. By that time, government records indicate that Alpha Platoon already was embroiled in another probe into war crimes allegations. Todd is a Marine veteran of the Iraq War. He wants to help NCIS agents get Eddie, said Parlatore. After two weeks of testimony, Chief Edward Gallagher was found not guilty of murdering a suspected ISIS prisoner in Iraq. The SO1 sniper said that the northern tower was occupied by Gallagher and two second class petty officers from SEAL Team 7. It appears largely stitched together from interviews with 11 Alpha Platoon members seven first class petty officers, two second class petty officers and a lieutenant a group that comprises about half of the force on the deployment, including their attachments from other Navy units, the Air Force and Marine Corps. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. Both defense attorneys and prosecutors agree that Gallaghers relationship with his former platoon was growing increasingly acrimonious. Special Operator 1st Class Josh Vriens is a former Navy SEAL sniper who served in Alpha Platoon under Eddie Gallaghers command. When ISIS launched a counterattack on our partner force, it was our SEAL platoon working in sync firing every single weapon in our arsenal from pistols to 500-pound bombs that stopped the counter-attack during an eight-hour firefight. ISIS had taken over large swaths of Iraq and Syria. To Gallaghers attorney Parlatore, the SO1s interview is the classic example of a witness whos trying to connect dots for investigators by grasping on to events and conversations that likely arent related but end up unfairly portraying the platoon chief as someone hes not. It was as simple as the banner that hung on my seventh-grade teachers desk: The right choice isnt always popular, and the popular choice isnt always right. My only regret is not doing more. And on Fox News this morning, flanked by his wife and lawyer, he reiterated his view that it was a group of disgruntled fellow SEALs who wanted to frame him. The problem was one mans insecurities, greed, and addiction. So he begins to see things the way theyd want to see them.. The SO1 sniper told NCIS that one of the SEAL SO1s who assisted Gallagher with the wounded detainee said the chief had begun threatening to kill mother(expletives) who accused him of wrongdoing. The sniper whos now a civilian claimed he saw Gallagher shoot an elderly man in his 70s or 80s on Fathers Day, 18 June 2017, a shooting backed up by a first class petty officer now assigned to Naval Special Warfare Development Group often called DEVGRU or SEAL Team 6, according to NCIS records. To the SO1, it was a sign that Gallagher was putting his beliefs into action. For that, he was demoted one rank. A proffer request from one of the two assistant officers in charge of the platoon indicates hes prepared to tell prosecutors that Gallagher called in false target coordinates to engage a mosque," tried to push his platoon into pointless and potentially catastrophic firefights with insurgents and became so mentally unstable that he shouldve been relieved from duty, but wasnt. A pirate is someone who is a little bit sloppier, messier, but is still a very effective fighter, Dylan Dille, another SEAL sniper and one of Gallaghers accusers, says in the first episode. [41][42], After the closure of the case, Gallagher and his initial lawyer entered a dispute in August 2019. Well, the way it works in military court, this will go to the convening authority for final approval of this sentence. On May 28, a panel of Gallaghers peers will start determining whats true about the allegations. [2], On July 2, 2019, Gallagher was convicted of posing for a photograph with the corpse of an ISIS fighter, but was acquitted of all other charges after Special Operator Corey Scott, a member of Gallaghers team granted immunity as a witness against Gallagher, testified that he had killed the prisoner. Following his Navy career, Gallagher began commercial ventures including an action figure, Former Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Gallagher posted the 3-minute video on both his Facebook and Instagram channels Monday. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. Hes since been advanced to chief, the same grade as Gallagher. Support C&L Go Ad-Free Today and blamed his accusers for being the cowards. My brothers are barrel-chested freedom fighters that go to the ends of the earth to carry out our nations foreign policy, fighting our nations enemies and liberating populations of people along the way. Clip from Apple TVs documentary The Line featuring Eddie Gallagher, former Navy Secretary Richard Spencer, and Navy SEAL Dylan Dille. So, in the end, that was what he was convicted of. We didnt focus on keeping evidence that would hold up in court. The plan for the platoon was to have a perimeter around (Gallagher) to prevent this from happening again, he said. These werent SEAL tactics. (Leo Shane III/Staff). Gallagher allegedly told two lieutenants and another chief that he had dirt on all of them and would bring them all down if they reported his war crimes, prosecutors wrote. We know that mistakes and accidents happen on deployment and innocent people always die in war. Was always a jerk. The medic, Special Operator First Class Corey Scott who testified under an immunity agreement, testified that he himself had killed the wounded prisoner by covering his breathing tube and asphyxiating him. Joseph Warpinski is the lead NCIS special agent assigned to the Gallagher probe. That SO1 told NCIS he left as the other two SEALs continued working on the prisoner, although other interviews and the prosecutions own legal filings in the case portray a chaotic scene, with memories about the incident often jumbled by all the witnesses. It was only later, the SO1 said, that he learned his platoon chief took the shot, but it remains unclear why he came to believe it was Gallagher. Instead, most only heard about Gallagher committing the same kinds of horrific acts as the people we were sent to fight. Recon. The accusations came from SEALs in Gallagher's own platoon, who said he was also known for taking shots at civilians from his sniper's nest, killing at least two. All right, Steve Walsh of KPBS in San Diego, thank you very much. I doubt Eddie Gallagher is thumbing away on his computer and coming up with these graphics and effects himself. One of the SEALs is particularly prized by prosecutors because he allegedly was an eyewitness to the murder, but hes prepared to go to the brig rather than testify in Gallaghers trial, according to an email provided to Navy Times.

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