Gallagher repeatedly sent us to positions where SEALs and our Iraqi partner forces were wounded or killed by small arms and rockets. In a statement Thursday, May 10, 2018, coalition spokesman Army Col. Ryan Dillon said that U.S.-backed Syrian forces have captured five senior Islamic State group leaders. And then his attorneys seem pretty eager to appeal this decision. When he returned from packing his gear, however, the LPO told NCIS he found Portier conducting a hasty re-enlistment ceremony for Gallagher next to the body of the dead ISIS fighter, according to the report. To Gallaghers legal team, theres a problem with these alleged motives. 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. This is the reason that other countries call us to solve their problems. [1] Some potential witnesses were non-cooperative, citing the Fifth Amendment's protection against self-incrimination when refusing to testify. But Gallagher faces a long line of SEALs prepared to provide damning testimony under oath against him. For a couple of lighter stories, check out Zero Blog 30's new episode that just came out this morning, one of which highlighted some Army Rangers who performed multiple blood transfusions in the middle of a firefight. The SO1 told Warpinski that five or six hours later he watched people emerging from nearby buildings and, maybe, fellow snipers engaging a few Islamic State fighters near there. The SO1 told Warpinski that by mid-August of 2018 Portier had become angry at Gallagher for allegedly mischaracterizing incidents that occurred during the deployment, including how Islamic State fighters ended up shooting both an interpreter assigned to the SEALs and an explosive ordnance technician. Must be 21+. These werent SEAL tactics. [54] Special Operator First Class Corey Scott, a platoon medic, had informed investigators, "You could tell he was perfectly O.K. They were looking at an image of what appeared to be a male detainee and Gallagher said, He was on the ground and I just started stabbing him. Want to write for Task & Purpose? They said that he went up in the sniper tower and shot at civilians. To Parlatore, the concerns expressed by the AOIC and other SEALs less experienced in combat than Gallagher really boiled down to disputes over how special operators should adapt to the 21st century urban battlefield. That said, facts are facts. Advertising InquiriesTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyContent PolicyMessaging Terms, AppAdvertising InquiriesTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyContent PolicyCookie PolicyBest Sports Betting SiteMessaging TermsSubscription Terms. But he said Portier wanted to hold off reporting the incident until he determined Iraqi security forces hadnt shot the girl. Yet few people heard about the lives saved, people liberated, or hope restored in Mosul. [1] Other snipers said they witnessed Gallagher taking at least two militarily pointless shots, shooting and killing an unarmed elderly man in a white robe as well as a young girl walking with other girls. So, in the end, that was what he was convicted of. 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. One of the SEALs, a second class petty officer, told investigators that Gallagher failed to exercise the discipline to let tactical situations develop," according to one of the legal filings obtained by Navy Times. 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. It appears as though a revenge tour is just getting started and that's a really sobering thought. After two weeks of testimony, Chief Edward Gallagher was found not guilty of murdering a suspected ISIS prisoner in Iraq. But some SEALs thought these tactics disregarded their specialty conducting nighttime raids designed to surprise enemies when they were less likely to fight back. I think part of this comes out of a misunderstanding about the mission, he told Navy Times. He also told NCIS that Gallagher had shot at but missed another young girl in a previous incident. It was a surprise, in the sense that, yesterday, when the verdict came out, and he was acquitted six of the seven charges, and all six were the most serious charges, there was a great deal of jubilation. Giorgio Kirylo testifying that he saw Gallagher try to save the prisoner, and observed no stab wounds on the dead man. [15] People who viewed the original email or a forward of this email would likely load the image through their mail-reading program (electronic mail, or e-mail client), which would record where it came from; this allows for imperfect monitoring of who has seen an email, without installing any software. Josh Vriens [9], During his eighth deployment in 2017, Gallagher's aggressiveness seemed to be amplified during the Battle for Mosul. Concerns about Gallaghers tactical judgment during the 2017 deployment pepper the NCIS files provided to Navy Times. [35] On July 2, 2019, they acquitted him on six of the seven original charges but found him guilty of the seventh charge of "wrongfully posing for an unofficial picture with a human casualty". Was always a jerk. 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. NCIS reported that a second class petty officer also saw Gallagher stab the prisoner, but later internal messages shared between defense attorneys and Navy officials appear to indicate that he thought the chief sank his knife into the detainees torso and the boy already had died. [5][6] He was trained as a medic, a sniper, and an explosives expert. It played into their overall narrative that this was a sloppy investigation, they didn't ask the right questions to the right people at the right time. Former Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Gallagher posted the 3-minute video on both his Facebook and Instagram channels Monday. The decorated Navy Seal was also accused of being reckless with his sniper rifle, and some of his platoon mates alleged that he shot at unarmed civilians. 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. The video uses footage from those NCIS interviews and highlights the faces of SEALs in the interviews and in a unit deployment photo, giving the name, rank and current position of six SEALs and the NCIS lead investigator. One of the SEALs overhead the chief say he was OK with shooting women and another saw him fire into a crowd of what appeared to be noncombatants multiple times," records state. 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. Once the SEALs reached the other side of the river, there didnt appear to be any options if they got pinned down by insurgent gunfire, the AOIC added. The LPO told NCIS that he informed both Portier and his assistant officer in charge of the platoon about the alleged murder. In the most prominently reported offense, he was accused of fatally stabbing an injured 17-year-old ISIS prisoner, photographing himself with the corpse, and sending the photo to friends. At one point, Gallagher told the AOIC that Alpha Platoon needed to find Islamic State fighters and get in one good TIC (Troops in Contact, the direct and violent engagement with an enemy), one where you need to focus on your field of fire or else you could take (a bullet) to the side of the head, according to the letter provided to Navy Times. [31] Scott called it a "mercy killing" and argued that the victim would have been tortured by Iraqi personnel due to his connection to the Islamic State. ", "Navy SEAL Demoted For Taking Photo With Corpse Of ISIS Fighter", "After Contentious Trial, Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher Found Not Guilty of the Murder of an ISIS Fighter", "Trump restores rank to Fort Wayne native, Navy SEAL Gallagher", "Decorated Navy SEAL Is Accused of War Crimes in Iraq", "A Jekyll and Hyde portrait emerges of the SEAL accused of murdering an Islamic State prisoner", "Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw fighting for fellow Navy SEAL being held on war crimes charges", "Navy SEALs Were Warned Against Reporting Their Chief for War Crimes", "Uncovering a Military Culture Split Between Loyalty and Justice", "Second Navy SEAL charged in war crimes probe", "Iraqi Family Identifies Their Son As ISIS Teen At Center Of Navy War Crimes Trial", "Trump's Intervention in SEALs Case Tests Pentagon's Tolerance", "Judge Denies Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher's Request to Dismiss War Crimes Charges", "Navy SEAL War Crimes Trial in Turmoil Over Claims Prosecutors Spied on Defense", "Marine testifies Navy SEAL did not stab Iraq captive", "Prosecutors, NCIS investigator accused of 'misconduct' in war crimes case", "In honor of his past service to our Country, Navy Seal #EddieGallagher will soon be moved to less restrictive confinement while he awaits his day in court. One of those incidents allegedly occurred on the day after he left. This would result in an improvement to Gallagher's pension and retirement benefits. Members of Navy SEAL Team 7 Alpha Platoon in Mosul, Iraq (Photo courtesy of the Joshua Vriens). The other SEAL sniper whos now a civilian told investigators that he estimated the girl to be a 12-year-old, according to another document provided to Navy Times. To the lieutenant, Gallagher was "putting their platoon in an extremely vulnerable position for a mission that was not even authorized, an argument that ended both his conversation with the chief and the proposed raid, according to the letter provided to Navy Times. 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. Later, another SO1 who was trained in battlefield medicine told NCIS that he remembered watching the other SEAL corpsman treating the detainee, who appeared to have suffered a leg injury and struggled to breathe, possibly from blast lung, a condition that often affects those who survive explosions. [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. Spencer responded that terminating this probe could only be done via an official written order from the White House. He insisted they all made the story up because THEY were afraid of This is a false narrative peddled by Gallagher and his supporters. A lot of remarkable things happened on that deployment. Gallaghers case became a cause clbre in conservative circles, with President Trump championing his innocence. By Julie Watson, Brian Melley, Associated Press. The most prominent accusation and the best-attested to was the murder of a prisoner of war, a war crime. He referred NCIS to an SO1 who served as a sniper during the deployment. 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. Many of these stories involved our interpreters family members. SEAL Team 1, SEAL Team 3, SEAL Team 5. [47][48] Esper immediately fired Spencer for going outside the chain of command. I didn't want to spread the names and wanted to see what they thought before even hitting publish but it's out there. [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. Lastly, we know that Gallagher's convicted of this one charge of posing with the photograph. WebEddie Gallagher (Navy SEAL) Edward R. Gallagher (born May 29, 1979) [1] is a retired United States Navy SEAL who was accused of war crimes. Most are very private about where they serve and how they are serving. He insisted they all made the story up because THEY were afraid of The decorated Navy Seal was also accused of being reckless with his sniper rifle, and some of his platoon mates alleged that he shot at unarmed civilians. The breadth and diversity of partners supporting the Coalition demonstrate the global and unified nature of the endeavor to defeat ISIS. [45] A week earlier, Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer had sent Trump a note asking him not to intervene again. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. [15] As a result of the spying controversy, the judge ordered Gallagher freed from prison while awaiting trial as a remedy to interference from the prosecution. Filling in that gap of time, an SO1 who had been with the detainee later told NCIS that the wounded fighter also received a chest tube. 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. You have been through much together. Gallagher repeatedly sent us to positions where SEALs and our Iraqi partner forces were wounded or killed by small arms and rockets. [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 always maintained his innocence. 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. But thats not what they were being asked to do in Iraq and they were blaming their frustrations on Eddie., Special Operations Chief Edward "Eddie" Gallagher, a highly decorated Navy SEAL, is fighting murder charges tied to the death of an Islamic State operative in Iraq. And while press reports suggested Scott could conceivably be charged with perjury, the Navy dropped their investigation into his statements shortly after Gallagher's acquittal. That SO1 was interviewed by NCIS Special Agent Seth Goodwin shortly after the LPO gave his statement. "[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. [39][36] President Trump congratulated Gallagher on his acquittal over Twitter. The accusations against Eddie were numerous, with the most prominent being the alleged murder of an Iraqi prisoner of war. [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. Was your sense that this verdict was a surprise? 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. 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He came to national attention in the United States after he was charged in September 2018 with ten offenses under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. The fourth girl, who was wearing a blue dress, helped the girl in the grey dress to her feet and helped get her over the berm.. 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. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. Was always a jerk. He was re-interviewed about five months later on Oct. 12 by Warpinski, the lead agent working the case. Some SEALs wanted to derail Gallaghers advancement to senior chief. They say its obstruction of justice or intimidating witnesses, but its really just telling the truth and telling the truth isnt obstructing justice, he said. This one involved whats called a switchblade drone that was operated by the platoon on Aug. 1 that killed civilians in Tal Afar, according to legal filings. [50] Also on November 25, Trump told reporters that Gallagher "was one of the ultimate fighters". Gallagher cut ties with Vokey and the United American Patriots in March 2019 and directed supporters to use a different non-profit to raise funds for his defense, the Navy SEALs Fund. 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. That was basically good time. [9] Khaled Jamal Abdullah, a captured 17-year-old fighter of the Islamic State, was being treated by a medic. Assuming that the witnesses even show up at least three of them have threatened to assert their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and refuse to testify, according to emails provided to Navy Times. Process should move quickly! [7], During his service, he was decorated for valor several times, including two Bronze Stars. Parlatore said that information in the video about the SEALs was already known. Eddie was definitely a pirate.. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. 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. A telling text seems to suggest that one of the SEAL witnesses at one point tried to get others in the platoon together to make sure their stories jibed with what theyd tell investigators, according to evidence files provided to Navy Times. [58], In 2021, Gallagher said on the podcast The Line, although he did not stab the ISIS fighter, "[the ISIS fighter] was killed by us, and that nobody at that time, had a problem with it", and the group performed medical procedures on the prisoner which killed him (including inserting an emergency airway into the ISIS fighter's throat, "just for practice"). His son was 6. [36] That charge carried a maximum prison sentence of four months. He watched as the SO1 inserted a chest tube while Gallagher, using a special kit, performed a cricothyroidotomy or cric" a simple and rapid surgical method for opening up a blocked airway by inserting a tube through an incision in the cricothyroid ligament, according to records provided to Navy Times. [15] The family of Abdullah, the boy Gallagher allegedly stabbed to death, was contacted by media several years after the event and claimed that they were unaware of the circumstances surrounding their son's death and that they had not been contacted by prosecutors. [8] He received positive evaluations from his superiors within the SEALs, and served as an instructor in the SEALs BUD/S program for recruits. The LPO got the impression that Gallagher had no intention of avoiding committing the same acts again and told NCIS the chief said, They do a lot worse to us.. Two other SEAL petty officers told investigators Gallagher bragged about slaying 10-20 people a day or 150-200 people on deployment, court documents state. Thats something the other medically-trained SO1 also told investigators; He returned to the area and was surprised to find the prisoner dead. Others were angry that he had been recommended for a post-tour combat valor award the Silver Star an honor they thought he didnt deserve. As much as some fringe creatures want to argue about our rules of engagement, ROEs were not the problem on this deployment. Green Berets. It is not always pretty, but just like first responders, that is the nature of our work. We didnt focus on keeping evidence that would hold up in court. Call 1 - 800 - GAMBLER, Best Influencer Marketplace for Advertisers, Best Influencer Marketplace for Influencers & Creators, Best Influencer Marketplace for Agents & Agencies, Frank Pepe Pizzeria Naploetana - Chestnut Hill. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/why-navy-seal-eddie-gallagher-was-found-not-guilty-of-murdering-iraqi-captive, Navy SEAL acquitted of killing says he made tactical, ethical, moral mistakes, Navy SEAL Gallagher cleared of most charges, Medic in Navy SEAL case takes blame for killing Islamic State fighter, Trial of Navy SEAL charged with war crimes set to begin, Lawyers for freed Navy SEAL want war crime case dismissed. 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. Photographic and video images reviewed by Navy Times seem fragmentary and inconclusive. Barstool Sportsbook has arrived in PA, MI, IL, IN, CO, VA, NJ, TN, AZ, IA, WV, LA, KS, MD, OH, MA. In that second session, the SO1 sniper recalled being inserted into a position near Mosul around 3 a.m. the southern of two towers but didnt give an exact date. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. In his statements to NCIS, the LPO said he later returned to the area, rounded a parked Humvee and spotted Gallagher kneeling on the right side of the wounded teen. [49] The next day (Nov. 25) Esper said that Trump had ordered him to allow Gallagher to keep his Trident Pin, so that Gallagher remained a SEAL until his retirement at the end of November 2019. clothing line and nutritional supplement endorsements. ", 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.
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