[27] Hunter told reporters that he intended to ask for a presidential pardon if Gallagher was convicted. These werent SEAL tactics. 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. 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. 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. Two of the other girls ran away and over a berm out of sight. 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. [47][48] Esper immediately fired Spencer for going outside the chain of command. [27] According to anonymous administration sources, the Justice Department was reviewing Gallagher's case in preparation for a possible pardon from President Trump. 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. For more on this case, I am joined by Steve Walsh. I like talking about fighter jets drawing sky penises and what smells reminds folks of the military. 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. @foxandfriends @RepRalphNorman", "Will Trump Go Nixonian With Clemency for War Criminals? Gallagher's accusers painted him as a bloodthirsty warrior who was out of control in Iraq in 2017. 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. Several of them said that they saw him stab this alleged captive ISIS prisoner. The guy is freaking evil, Miller told the investigators. Gallagher and his commanding officer, Lieutenant Jake Portier, then posed for photographs of them standing over the body with some other nearby SEALs. I hoped the men who were acquitted or pardoned would use their platforms to bring awareness about issues facing veterans and active-duty members. The SEAL didnt think Gallagher was working on a severely wounded detainee, but the platoon chief was soon assisted by another SO1. There is a digital trove of evidence a mile long where Eddie violated dozens of articles of the UCMJ. (Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images). As usual, Fox News figures prominently. They appear to have cast doubt on whether Gallagher actually killed anyone during the entire deployment, lawfully or unlawfully. They also have other texts where he threatens to kill his platoon. This was a prosecution witness, not a so, on cross-examination, that's when the defense brought this up. [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. He was re-interviewed about five months later on Oct. 12 by Warpinski, the lead agent working the case. Throughout the trial, Gallagher acted as though it was not he who had been accused of wrongdoing but the investigators, prosecutors and witnesses. Got him with my hunting knife.". We didnt focus on keeping evidence that would hold up in court. It was the judge advocate generals office at Group 1s California HQ that summoned Warpinskis agency, records reveal. Gallagher went to trial last summer on charges that he murdered an Islamic State prisoner of war and committed other war crimes in May 2017 outside Mosul, Iraq. One of those incidents allegedly occurred on the day after he left. The most prominent accusation and the best-attested to was the murder of a prisoner of war, a war crime. [46], On November 24, 2019, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said he had learned that Spencer made a private offer to the White House that if the White House did not interfere, he would guarantee that Gallagher would keep his Trident pin. 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. We were Navy SEALs fighting ISIS in a battle that has been called the most intense urban conflict since World War II. Eddie was definitely a pirate.. 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. [32], Prosecutors were taken by surprise by Scott's testimony, since the medic had never given this version of events to them or Navy investigators. [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. Following his Navy career, Gallagher began commercial ventures including an action figure, They trust us with the lives of their people because of the standards to which we hold each other. New York Times reporter Dave Philipps joins Deadline White House panel to discuss the Navy SEALs' testimony against Eddie Gallagher. [5], Gallagher was also charged with nearly a dozen lesser offenses. 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. Eddie outing these people and the units they are in might be unprecedented in the SEAL community. [33], After the trial, it was considered possible that Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Corey Scott, the SEAL Medic whose surprise testimony dismantled the prosecution's case, would be prosecuted for perjury; however, Chief of Naval Operations John M. Richardson stripped Navy prosecutors of their authority to charge Scott with perjury. The San Diego Times-Union has written about it. ", By Many people have asked why we didnt report these crimes as soon as they happened and instead waited months to report them. 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. Because of the immunity agreement Scott could not be prosecuted for testifying that he killed the prisoner. [7], During his service, he was decorated for valor several times, including two Bronze Stars. 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. And others have declined to participate in the ongoing NCIS probe, including a Marine staff sergeant and a pair of Navy explosive ordnance disposal technicians attached to the platoon during the 2017 deployment. That had a significant impact on the battlefield. Well, they addressed it in the sense of, they said that this was dark humor. WebAnswer (1 of 13): I will admit out right that I havnt liked Eddie since he was my buddy Daves LPO. Published Jan 25, 2022 9:00 AM EST. But, in the meantime, he had already served eight months in the brig. Gallagher repeatedly sent us to positions where SEALs and our Iraqi partner forces were wounded or killed by small arms and rockets. This account was also contrary to the statements of at least seven other SEALs[33] as well as Scott's previous statements. No one. Thank you. 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. And still more SEALs say theyll tell the panel that Gallagher attempted to cover up these alleged crimes by threatening to murder witnesses and embarking on a campaign to identify other whistleblowers, get them blacklisted in the special warfare community and ruin their careers. One dude I was good friends with was so paranoid that he hadn't taken a single picture with his son. Was your sense that this verdict was a surprise? Jason Hull). [55], In March 2020, David Martin of CBS News interviewed Gallagher, his wife, and his attorney on the CBS program 60 Minutes.[56]. That said, facts are facts. Eddie was definitely a pirate.. This is a false narrative peddled by Gallagher and his supporters. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. He was the first non-Marine to graduate from the United States Marine Corps Scout Sniper School that he attended. Platoon members said they saw Chief Gallagher shoot civilians and fatally stab a wounded captive with a hunting knife. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. Now, of course, there was some conflicting testimony. "[6][5] Gallagher's lawyer, Phillip Stackhouse, alleged the accusations were without foundation and came from a small number of disgruntled SEALs who could not meet Gallagher's leadership demands. Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on June 9, 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Late last month, this trial took a dramatic turn when one of the prosecution's witnesses, Navy SEAL Corey Scott, testified that, after he saw Gallagher stab the teenager, Scott killed the captive by plugging his breathing tube. Jake Portier, and told him they needed to get out of the area.". "Not a single one of us could have imagined that we would have to report a friend and mentor. A member of the Iraqi federal police awaits his next movement on the streets of the recently secured airport during the offensive to liberate West Mosul, Iraq, March 2, 2017. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. WebAnswer (1 of 13): I will admit out right that I havnt liked Eddie since he was my buddy Daves LPO. 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. Photographic and video images reviewed by Navy Times seem fragmentary and inconclusive. That said, facts are facts. Later that night, the LPO gathered the platoons enlisted SEALs together and told them that morally they could not let these actions continue, so if Iraqi security forces brought more prisoners to them they should send them away so Gallagher could not injure anyone else, according to the NCIS report. 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. Multiple pieces of GoPro footage are missing and prosecutors say they cant locate them. Another sniper who also has indicated he might not testify later told prosecutors that he saw an old man go down, but he didnt see Gallagher shoot him, according to emails to prosecutors provided to Navy Times. A lot of remarkable things happened on that deployment. [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. Concerns about Gallaghers tactical judgment during the 2017 deployment pepper the NCIS files provided to Navy Times. "[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. Thats because Gallagher who disliked using a spotter tried to keep away from Portier while they were in the sniper positions because (Gallagher) complained that Portier was too controlling and talked too much, according to the report. When seemingly endless processions of women, children and elderly people were fleeing ISIS, we offered up what little MREs and water we had, and gave medical care when possible. Must be 21+. Gallagher was charged with murdering 17-year-old Khaled Jamal Abdullah in 2018, along with other charges. Navy Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher celebrates after being acquitted of premeditated murder at Naval Base San Diego, July 2, 2019, in San Diego. But, the good comes with the bad. He was slated to be awarded a Silver Star during that fateful deployment in Mosul when the By Julie Watson, Brian Melley, Associated Press. Gallagher was convicted on charges related to posing with the corpse and reduced in rating. Not a single one of us could have imagined that we would have to report a friend and mentor for war crimes. They want to do what SEALs do, things like raids where they can rehearse the operation to perfection. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. He's been following the story for KPBS Public Media in San Diego, and he was there for the verdict and sentencing today. The seriously wounded Islamic State fighter, believed to be between 15 and 17 years of age, military prosecutors believe was murdered by a Navy SEAL. But to Gallaghers attorney Parlatore, thats where NCIS and the prosecutors started getting it wrong. 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. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. And as a SEAL who served in Alpha Platoon under the command of now-disgraced Chief Petty Officer Eddie Gallagher, those words are what helped push me to report my own chief for his horrific actions in Iraq. By that time, government records indicate that Alpha Platoon already was embroiled in another probe into war crimes allegations. All appear on camera. If the prosecution is right, the chief likely will spend the rest of his life behind bars. You have been through much together. 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. 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. It appears as though a revenge tour is just getting started and that's a really sobering thought. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif. (third from right) speaks at a rally on Capitol Hill supporting Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Gallagher, facing war crimes charges for actions in Afghanistan. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. [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. Throughout the trial, Gallagher acted as though it was not he who had been accused of wrongdoing but the investigators, prosecutors and witnesses. 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. 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. On May 28, a panel of Gallaghers peers will start determining whats true about the allegations. [8] He received positive evaluations from his superiors within the SEALs, and served as an instructor in the SEALs BUD/S program for recruits. But justified or not, whats clear to everyone is that they didnt like the mission. He told Navy Times that Gallagher appeared to have drawn from a deeper understanding of tactics than his junior SEALs possessed and was channeling lessons learned in Iraq a decade earlier. He made the tactical decisions and we carried them out. The accusations against Eddie were numerous, with the most prominent being the alleged murder of an Iraqi prisoner of war. But the one thing that they did have were these photographs that Gallagher sent out to people in the United States and other members of the platoon with him posing with a knife up to the dead detainee. [17] For the most serious charge of murder of a prisoner, according to the defense, Gallagher stabbed a corpse and embellished a story out of misplaced bravado; the prisoner had already died of his wounds. He remembered attending Bible study at the home of the chief and his wife, Andrea, who led the class. [9], Gallagher was involved in controversies and investigations, but received few formal reprimands. [28] This potential pardon was hotly criticized in the Washington Post's opinion pages. Gallagher openly discussed topics including his career, the raid upon his home, pre-trial confinement, legal proceedings, acquittal, retirement, and his life and family. Well, Gallagher's team said that, essentially, they portrayed this as an investigation that was out of control, that had targeted Gallagher from the very beginning. Scott claimed it was an act of mercy. The first NCIS interrogation kicked off on April 16, 2018, with a first class special warfare operator an SO1. [19], On November 21, President Trump tweeted, "The Navy will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher's Trident Pin. Two other SEALs who also deployed with Gallagher but did not testify in his trial told the San Diego Union-Tribune on Monday speaking out against the retired Chiefs identifying currently serving SEAL Team members. Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter. Clip from Apple TVs documentary The Line featuring Eddie Gallagher, former Navy Secretary Richard Spencer, and Navy SEAL Dylan Dille. 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. [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"). 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. 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? We even talked to Jocko Willink about taking pictures just last week. 1996 - 2023 NewsHour Productions LLC. [9], During his eighth deployment in 2017, Gallagher's aggressiveness seemed to be amplified during the Battle for Mosul. There is a digital trove of evidence a mile long where Eddie violated dozens of articles of the UCMJ. Gallagher snapped, Thats tactics and were not here to talk about tactics, the SO1 said. 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. SEAL Team 1, SEAL Team 3, SEAL Team 5. We arent lawyers. clothing line and nutritional supplement endorsements. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. [1], The defense also claimed that the lead NCIS agent slanted witness statements and interviews to be more hostile to Gallagher than warranted in his notes. If Gallaghers defense team is right, hell walk out of Naval Base San Diego a free man. "The guy was toxic," said SO1 Joshua Vriens. And a fellow sniper intends to tell the panel that Gallagher claimed, he averaged three kills a day over 80 days, according to legal filings obtained by Navy Times. 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.. After two weeks of testimony, Chief Edward Gallagher was found not guilty of murdering a suspected ISIS prisoner in Iraq. I lifted his head, I looked into his eyes and I stabbed him again, according to the NCIS report. Apparently, he sent a photograph of the captive's body. 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.

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