Yet few people heard about the lives saved, people liberated, or hope restored in Mosul. They said that he went up in the sniper tower and shot at civilians. [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]. Lastly, we know that Gallagher's convicted of this one charge of posing with the photograph. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. "The guy was toxic," said SO1 Joshua Vriens. Parlatore said that information in the video about the SEALs was already known. 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. That's going to have implications on Gallagher's retirement. (Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images). There were differences of opinion about how they should conduct operations. The request was initially rejected by Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar. We should all know who we are fighting, why we are fighting, and the rules that we have to abide by. One of the SEALs served as a sniper in Iraq and left the Navy when he returned to California. All appear on camera. Gallagher SEAL Team 1, SEAL Team 3, SEAL Team 5. Joseph Warpinski is the lead NCIS special agent assigned to the Gallagher probe. 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. 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. (AP Photo, File). Eddie Gallagher Eddie was definitely a pirate.. It was the judge advocate generals office at Group 1s California HQ that summoned Warpinskis agency, records reveal. 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. That is best sailor, in all 6 teams on the West Coast: NSWU-1, NSWU-3, SDVT-1. They also have other texts where he threatens to kill his platoon. Get the latest in military news, entertainment and gear in your inbox daily. Eddie Gallagher That included Gallagher telling another platoon chief that the rest of the platoon were afraid to go out on patrol during the deployment and they were all cowards, according to the NCIS report about the SO1 snipers interview. The decorated Navy SEAL had been accused of stabbing the wounded teenage captive, as well as attempted murder of Iraqi civilians and obstruction of justice. (photos provided). clothing line and nutritional supplement endorsements. I think part of this comes out of a misunderstanding about the mission, he told Navy Times. 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. Subscribe to Heres the Deal, our politics Two high-ranking Iraqi members of the Ministry of the Interiors forces, Maj. Gen. Abbas al-Jubouri and Col. Omar Issa Khadim, told NCIS that the detainee was barely alive when they brought him to the SEALs compound and passed away from gunshot wounds, not a stabbing. [51] Gallagher's case was scheduled for a hearing by the Navy SEAL review board on December 2, 2019. One aspect of this video that I find really interesting is that it's obviously from a larger-scale project. Eddie Gallagher [6] On October 18, Lieutenant Jacob Portier of Gallagher's platoon was also charged with failing to properly notify his superiors within the chain of command, to include the destruction of evidence. William Brangham reports and talks to Steve Walsh of San Diegos KPBS public radio about how the dramatic case evolved. [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. Investigators later placed the alleged incident in July, without specifying the date. SEALs Divided: Documentary Hunts for the To attempt to out (their) status raises questions about the decision to do so.. Both are expected to testify that it was clear the man was a noncombatant and they made the decision not to shoot, according to a filing provided to defense attorneys. SEAL Team 1, SEAL Team 3, SEAL Team 5. All Rights Reserved. All rights reserved. Now, of course, there was some conflicting testimony. [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. Eddie Gallagher The LPO told the investigator that there were other war crimes fellow SEALs witnessed, but he didnt see them. Gallagher's accusers painted him as a bloodthirsty warrior who was out of control in Iraq in 2017. Many have asked, How could you turn in a brother? Let me clarify something: Gallagher was our Chief. [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. Eddie Gallagher Reddit Real brothers dont chase medals. 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. We raise each other up and create a culture of constant improvement and accountability. He insisted they all made the story up because THEY were afraid of Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. Learn more about Friends of the NewsHour. As more witnesses began reciting their allegations against the chief, prosecutors contend that Gallagher circulated their identities to others in the SEAL community and encouraged them to disclose the names and blacklist them.. The problem is, once they get what they wanted, the process doesnt stop. Theres the fog of war, of course, but several statements display fundamental disagreements about what occurred on the battlefield and was rehashed during meetings with each other and their superiors back in California. But I guess the evidence citing if Gallagher has a text that says, "I can't wait to tell you the story about this, I got him with my knife," how did Gallagher's team push that off? 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. A retired Navy SEALwhose war crimes trial made international news has launched a video attack on former SEAL teammates who accused him of murder, shooting civilians and who testified against him at his San Diego court-martial in June. I just want to make clear that this small group of SEALs that decided to concoct this story in no way, shape or form represent the community that I have, you know, loved and gave my soul to. The only thing he was convicted of was posing in a photo with the dead captive's body. [19] The president's move also favored several other military members accused of misconduct: in addition to Gallagher, Lieutenant Clint Lorance was ordered freed; and the prosecution of Matthew Golsteyn was ended. In an interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune newspaper, one of Gallaghers attorneys, Tim Parlatore, did not specify what his clients future project will be or when it will release but did disclose that it will include more footage from the NCIS interviews and the 2017 deployment. On May 28, Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher will be guided into a courtroom inside Naval Base San Diego, where he will face a panel of his peers sifting evidence in a war crimes case. Green Berets. [10] He allegedly tried to run over a Navy police officer with his car in 2014, after being detained at a traffic stop. This would result in an improvement to Gallagher's pension and retirement benefits. [44], The clemency decision ended up moot: in November 2019, President Trump announced that Gallagher's demotion would be reversed. Legal filings and messages exchanged between defense attorneys and prosecutors provided to Navy Times show other SEALs who broke contact with NCIS after the initial round of interviews. Task and Purpose has written about it. Eddie Gallagher They have no body in this case, very little forensic evidence. They appear to have cast doubt on whether Gallagher actually killed anyone during the entire deployment, lawfully or unlawfully. The AOIC told prosecutors that one proposed raid was so poorly conceived by Gallagher that it lacked a tactical goal the platoon could achieve, except inexplicably shooting people who might or might not be under a bridge. Several of them said that they saw him stab this alleged captive ISIS prisoner. Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher Releases The Names Another text said: "Good story behind this. Gallagher The guy is freaking evil, Miller told the investigators. But, in the meantime, he had already served eight months in the brig. 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. Gallagher and his commanding officer, Lieutenant Jake Portier, then posed for photographs of them standing over the body with some other nearby SEALs. Well, they addressed it in the sense of, they said that this was dark humor. I mean, if you think about this, this is something that happened in Iraq in 2017. [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". Todd South has written about crime, courts, government and the military for multiple publications since 2004 and was named a 2014 Pulitzer finalist for a co-written project on witness intimidation. Click here. At no time is loyalty to each other put over loyalty to the country and mission. For that, he was demoted one rank. SEALs Divided: Documentary Hunts for the 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. Around noon, the SO1 said he panned north along the banks of the Tigris River, watching a path used by refugee families to escape Islamic State-controlled Mosul. No one. 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. That is best sailor, in all 6 teams on the West Coast: NSWU-1, NSWU-3, SDVT-1. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. The train has left the station and now they cant get off the rails. It escalates and Warpinski is now on the case.". Eddie was definitely a pirate.. 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. ", "Trump Orders Navy to Strip Medals From Prosecutors in War Crimes Trial", "The Prosecutors who lost the case against SEAL Eddie Gallagher (who I released from solitary confinement so he could fight his case properly), were ridiculously given a Navy Achievement Medal. 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. He wants to help NCIS agents get Eddie, said Parlatore. action against Gallagher after SEALs. As it was supposedly being handled, we took matters into our own hands to attempt to stop our chief. ", "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. 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. He insisted they all made the story up because THEY were afraid of After two weeks of testimony, Chief Edward Gallagher was found not guilty of murdering a suspected ISIS prisoner in Iraq. Chief Eddie Gallagher (right, in cap) takes control of a prisoner (far left), an ISIS fighter who had been wounded. [7], During his service, he was decorated for valor several times, including two Bronze Stars. 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. 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. As for using them as bait, different SEALs appeared to have different ideas about what the concept meant. Gallagher I have directed the Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer & Chief of Naval Operations John Richardson to immediately withdraw and rescind the awards", "Lawyer for Eddie Gallagher Says Acquitted Navy SEAL Owes Him Up to $1 Million", "Navy Reduces Punishment for SEAL in War Crimes Case", "Report: Trump makes SEAL Gallagher a chief again", "Navy secretary strongly considering resigning over Trump's meddling in SEAL case", "Trump ordered Gallagher be allowed to retire as Navy SEAL, defense secretary says", "Esper says Trump ordered him to stop SEAL review board", "Eddie Gallagher controversy: Esper fires Navy secretary, SEAL will keep Trident pin, Pentagon says", "Esper says Trump ordered him to allow Gallagher to keep his Trident pin and remain a SEAL", "Does Trump's Navy SEAL pardon undermine military justice? I mean, that's got to do something to your case, if your key witness sort of says, actually, the guy you think killed it didn't do it, I did it. 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. After the platoon rotated home to Naval Base Coronado on Sept. 1, 2017, Gallagher called a meeting in their high bay to confront his fellow SEALs about any problems they had with him, according to several NCIS reports. But officials insisted he received threats because he helped investigators and asked that his identity be protected for now, too. And when our EOD technician was shot on a rooftop, it was Medic Corey Scott who immediately treated him and formulated a plan to get him off the roof as Lt. Tom MacNeil called in a medical evacuation in defiance of Lt. Jake Portier, our platoon leader, who ordered him not to do so because we were in a restricted area. Portier, he said, gathered all of the team members together and took a photograph of the team.". We act on the information that we have on hand. On the stand, his attorney said called them entitled young SEALs. Reddit That was basically good time. Scott claimed it was an act of mercy. The plan for the platoon was to have a perimeter around (Gallagher) to prevent this from happening again, he said. 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 always a jerk. They yanked an injured boy the SEAL estimated he was 16 years old, but others thought him younger off the hood, near where Gallagher was standing. Directors Doug Shultz and Jeff Zimbalist secured the participation of Gallagher; his wife, Andrea; and the members of SEAL Team 7 who accused Gallagher of war crimes. The SO1 sniper said that the northern tower was occupied by Gallagher and two second class petty officers from SEAL Team 7. Both defense attorneys and prosecutors agree that Gallaghers relationship with his former platoon was growing increasingly acrimonious. Please check your inbox to confirm. After watching the mini-series The Line, do you believe All appear on camera. 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. 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. I didn't want to spread the names and wanted to see what they thought before even hitting publish but it's out there. That said, facts are facts. WebAnswer (1 of 13): I will admit out right that I havnt liked Eddie since he was my buddy Daves LPO. [3], Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana on May 29, 1979, Gallagher graduated from Bishop Dwenger High School. Iraqi security forces distribute food to refugees from Badush outside of a patrol base near Al Tarab, Iraq during the offensive to liberate West Mosul from ISIS, on March 10, 2017. The SEAL compound boasted a main headquarters building that overlooked the low ground below them and peered over an opposite hillside. ", "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. 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. (Leo Shane III/Staff). Our deployment to Mosul in 2017 had the potential to be one of the most kinetic deployments in recent Naval Special Warfare history. 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. Eddie Gallagher says SEALs lied in He was interviewed in 2020 by former Navy SEAL and current K9 trainer Mike Ritland on YouTube. So Gallaghers trial ultimately will ask a panel of officers and senior enlisted sailors to weigh the credibility of witnesses mostly junior SEALs testifying about what they allegedly saw or heard, and then evaluate their possible motives for expressing their recollections that way. with killing anybody that was moving," but recanting his testimony during the Gallagher trial, for which he was given immunity,[31] saying he had committed the murder himself, presumably powerfully influencing the verdicts. They don't want this sentence of confinement on his record, if they can possibly avoid it. Gallagher repeatedly sent us to positions where SEALs and our Iraqi partner forces were wounded or killed by small arms and rockets.