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Title: Anguish and Anger From the Navy SEALS Who Turned In Edward Gallagher
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URL Source: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a ... in-edward-gallagher/ar-BBYnIkN
Published: Dec 28, 2019
Author: Dave Philipps
Post Date: 2019-12-28 08:00:36 by Ada
Keywords: None
Views: 972
Comments: 32
The Navy SEALs showed up one by one, wearing hoodies and T-shirts instead of uniforms, to tell investigators what they had seen. Visibly nervous, they shifted in their chairs, rubbed their palms and pressed their fists against their foreheads. At times they stopped in midsentence and broke into tears. “Sorry about this,” Special Operator First Class Craig Miller, one of the most experienced SEALs in the group, said as he looked sideways toward a blank wall, trying to hide that he was weeping. “It’s the first time — I’m really broken up about this.” Sign Up For the Morning Briefing Newsletter Video recordings of the interviews obtained by The New York Times, which have not been shown publicly before, were part of a trove of Navy investigative materials about the prosecution of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher on war crimes charges including murder. They offer the first opportunity outside the courtroom to hear directly from the men of Alpha platoon, SEAL Team 7, whose blistering testimony about their platoon chief was dismissed by President Trump when he upended the military code of justice to protect Chief Gallagher from the punishment. “The guy is freaking evil,” Special Operator Miller told investigators. “The guy was toxic,” Special Operator First Class Joshua Vriens, a sniper, said in a separate interview. “You could tell he was perfectly O.K. with killing anybody that was moving,” Special Operator First Class Corey Scott, a medic in the platoon, told the investigators. Such dire descriptions of Chief Gallagher, who had eight combat deployments and sometimes went by the nickname Blade, are in marked contrast to Mr. Trump’s portrayal of him at a recent political rally in Florida as one of “our great fighters.” Though combat in Iraq barely fazed the SEALs, sitting down to tell Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents about what they had seen their platoon chief do during a 2017 deployment in Iraq was excruciating for them. Not only did they have to relive wrenching events and describe grisly scenes, they had to break a powerful unwritten code of silence in the SEALs, one of the nation’s most elite commando forces. The trove of materials also includes thousands of text messages the SEALs sent one another about the events and the prosecution of Chief Gallagher. Together with the dozens of hours of recorded interviews, they provide revealing insights into the men of the platoon, who have never spoken publicly about the case, and the leader they turned in. Platoon members said they saw Chief Gallagher shoot civilians and fatally stab a wounded captive with a hunting knife. Chief Gallagher was acquitted by a military jury in July of all but a single relatively minor charge, and was cleared of all punishment in November by Mr. Trump. Video from a SEAL’s helmet camera, included in the trove of materials, shows the barely conscious captive — a teenage Islamic State fighter so thin that his watch slid easily up and down his arm — being brought in to the platoon one day in May 2017. Then the helmet camera is shut off. In the video interviews with investigators, three SEALs said they saw Chief Gallagher go on to stab the sedated captive for no reason, and then hold an impromptu re-enlistment ceremony over the body, as if it were a trophy. “I was listening to it, and I was just thinking, like, this is the most disgraceful thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” Special Operator Miller, who has since been promoted to chief, told investigators. Special Operator Miller said that when the platoon commander, Lt. Jacob Portier, told the SEALs to gather over the corpse for photos, he did not feel he could refuse. The photos, included in the evidence obtained by The Times, show Chief Gallagher, surrounded by other SEALs, clutching the dead captive’s hair; in one photo, he holds a custom-made hunting knife. A screenshot from an Instagram account belonging to Officer Gallagher and his wife shows a custom-made hatchet.© Provided by The New York Times A screenshot from an Instagram account belonging to Officer Gallagher and his wife shows a custom-made hatchet. “I think Eddie was proud of it, and that was, like, part of it for him,” Special Operator Miller told investigators. Chief Gallagher’s lawyer, Timothy Parlatore, said the video interviews were rife with inconsistencies and falsehoods that created “a clear road map to the acquittal.” Since his arrest nearly a year ago, Chief Gallagher has insisted that the charges against him were concocted by six disgruntled SEALs in his platoon who could not meet his high standards and wanted to force him out. “My first reaction to seeing the videos was surprise and disgust that they would make up blatant lies about me, but I quickly realized that they were scared that the truth would come out of how cowardly they acted on deployment,” Chief Gallagher said in a statement issued through his lawyer. “I felt sorry for them that they thought it necessary to smear my name, but they never realized what the consequences of their lies would be. As upset as I was, the videos also gave me confidence because I knew that their lies would never hold up under real questioning and the jury would see through it. Their lies and N.C.I.S.’s refusal to ask hard questions or corroborate their stories strengthened my resolve to go to trial and clear my name.” The video interviews and private group text conversations obtained by The Times do not reveal any coordinated deception among the SEALs in the chief’s platoon. Instead, they show men who were hesitant to come forward, but who urged one another to resist outside pressure and threats of violence, and to be honest. “Tell the truth, don’t lie or embellish,” one sniper who is now in SEAL Team 6 told the others in a group text in 2017, when they first tried to report the chief. “That way, he can’t say that we slandered him in any way.” When several SEALs in the group questioned what would come of reporting the chief to their commanders, another wrote: “That’s their decision. We just need to give them the truth.” It is an unspoken rule among their teams that SEALs should not report other SEALs for misconduct. An internal investigation could close off choice assignments or end careers for the accusers as well as the accused. And anyone who reported concerns outside the tight-knit SEAL community risked being branded a traitor. “In a perfect world, there would be no risk, but that is not where we are,” Rick Haas, a retired command master chief who served in the SEALs for 30 years, said in an interview with The Times. “The teams are now divided over this, like I’ve never seen happen before.” In cramped interview rooms in San Diego, SEALs who spoke to Navy investigators painted a picture of a platoon driven to despair by a chief who seemed to care primarily about racking up kills. They described how their chief targeted women and children and boasted that “burqas were flying.” Asked whether the chief had a bias against Middle Eastern people, Special Operator Scott replied, “I think he just wants to kill anybody he can.” Some of the SEALs said they came to believe that the chief was purposefully exposing them to enemy fire to bait ISIS fighters into revealing their positions. They said the chief thought that casualties in the platoon would increase his chances for a Silver Star. Special Operator Vriens told investigators he had wanted to confront the chief in Iraq but had worried that if he did, he would be cut from missions and no longer be present to protect other SEALs from the chief. As he spoke, he struggled to keep his composure. “I can speak up, stand my ground,” he said in the interview. “He’s just going to do this to a new guy who he can manipulate. So I was like, I’m going to be his right-hand man, so — so no one else got hurt.” He pressed his forehead into his fists and started to cry. Then he took several deep breaths, rubbed his hands together and tried to continue. “So I worked for him and I kept my mouth shut,” he said. The platoon members told investigators that they tried repeatedly to report what they saw, but that the chain of command above them was friendly toward Chief Gallagher and took no action. Finally, in April 2018, they went outside the SEALs to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Chief Gallagher was arrested a few months later. The SEALs in the platoon were scattered to new assignments. They tried to keep tabs on the case, texting one another and commiserating over a series of setbacks, including accusations of prosecutorial misconduct, the removal of the lead prosecutor and reports that the judge overseeing the case was being investigated on suspicion of lying under oath. “This stuff is frustrating to read and makes it seem like Eddie will possibly get away with murder (literally),” Special Operator First Class Dylan Dille texted the group. “Let’s not forget there are 7-12 of us in here who had the balls to tell the truth about what Eddie has done.” He said he thought the case against Chief Gallagher was strong despite the procedural setbacks. “I am also convinced that we are gonna answer to a higher power someday, and everything happens for a reason,” wrote Special Operator Dille, who has since left the Navy. “Not compromising our integrity and keeping right on our side is all we can do.” Seven members of the 22-person platoon testified at the trial that they saw the chief commit war crimes. Two men from the platoon testified that they did not see any evidence of crimes. Others refused to cooperate with prosecutors. Crucially, one SEAL who had accused the chief during the investigation — Special Operator Scott — changed his story on the witness stand, testifying that he and not Chief Gallagher had caused the captive’s death. Three of the men who testified at the trial left the Navy afterward, and have been trying to keep a low profile while they build civilian lives. Others are still in the SEAL teams, in some cases working on classified assignments. Some fear that coming forward has hurt their chances at success in the SEALs, but none have reported any retaliation. All of them declined to comment for this article. Since the trial, Chief Gallagher has repeatedly insulted them on social media and on Fox News, especially Craig Miller, whom the chief singled out for weeping while talking to investigators. Chief Gallagher retired from the Navy with full honors at the end of November, and has announced that he was starting a SEAL-themed clothing line. A few days after he retired, an Instagram account belonging to him and his wife posted a photo of a custom-made hatchet, forged by the same SEAL veteran who made the hunting knife he was accused of using to kill the captive. Before the deployment, Chief Gallagher had told the knife maker he hoped to “dig that knife or hatchet on someone’s skull!” “Eddie finally got his stuff back from NCIS,” the post said, listing the hatchet among a “few of our favorite things now returned.” Another item returned to him was a black-and-white Islamic State flag. On Saturday, Chief Gallagher presented Mr. Trump with a folded black-and-white cloth that other SEALs from the platoon said appeared to be the flag. A post on the chief’s Instagram account said, “Finally got to thank the President and his amazing wife by giving them a little gift from Eddie’s deployment to Mosul.”
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#1. To: Ada (#0)
Normally would give this a ...HORSESHIT...rating. In the military one does NOT recruit run of the mill volunteers to kill people, face to face. It was not a fair fight recently when Baghdadi was shot.The shooter was lauded as a hero by Americans. The shooter WAS NOT THE RUN OF THE MILL RECRUIT OFF THE STREET. They are trained and paid to kill people, paid by the taxpayers, you and me.
They are trained and paid to kill people, paid by the taxpayers, you and me. Very true. These guys a professional killers. Just like Green Berets and Navy Seals. I knew a guy that was the shoe repairman over in Lebanon where I lived for a while when driving trucks. He was a Green Beret in Vietnam. He was exposed to Agent Orange and had lesions on his legs. One time he took a trip to Hawaii. They brought a doctor in from South America and they treated him for the sores. For a while he was in good shape. But I heard he recently passed away and the family closed the shop and sold all the equipment. He is likely buried in Springfield Veteran's Cemetary. :-/ "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke
It is about time that the dime has been dropped on the US military and the horrors that they do in other countries.
So were the SEALS who made the complaint. They seemed to think that Gallagher besmirched their honor.
There is NO honor in killing people. It is a job that has to be done, men are paid to do it. IT TAKES A MAN WITH A DIFFERENT CODE OF LIFE TO VOLUNTEER TO DO IT. The military knows EXACTLY the mental makeup of the men they are recruiting. They must first be physically superior, secondly they must be mentally adaptable to killing on a personal basis.
I'm betting the snitches got in under that fucking asshole Obama. Eddie Gallagher is tough and gets the job done - they're not in the business of delivering Girl Scout cookies.... General Patton, too, had his detractors and nobody remembers their names. “With the exception of Whites, the rule among the peoples of the world, whether residing in their homelands or settled in Western democracies, is ethnocentrism and moral particularism: they stick together and good means what is good for their ethnic group." I reread the requirements needed for such military units. On the front page is this..YOU MUST BE WILLING TO ENGAGE IN...IRREGULAR AND UNCONVENTIONAL WARFARE... That they must agree to...before...they are even considered.
If a nation is going to fight these pigs on the ground, you need someone like SEAL Eddie Gallagher. When you must fight terror, you break that 'glass cover' and retrieve your best terror fighting tool and turn him loose to do his job. You don't sit behind a desk and judge him later. I'm glad that he is on our side. I support him and all his actions. There is no requirement to neat and tidy during times of war. “With the exception of Whites, the rule among the peoples of the world, whether residing in their homelands or settled in Western democracies, is ethnocentrism and moral particularism: they stick together and good means what is good for their ethnic group." In this case the desk warriors are military lawyers that should be ashamed for taking their pay. None of them are men enough to carry a Seals lunch. During Korean thing, friend of mine was grounded due heart murmur. He was immediately put on military jury duty to hang enlisted men. The shyster lawyers told members of board what horrible criminals the men were, they were guilty and needed to be punished. My friend and one other flying officer started voting not guilty. The shysters were so enraged, the two were removed from further trials. Military jkustice is bullshit.
Good Men. They kept low-level soldiers from being railroaded. “With the exception of Whites, the rule among the peoples of the world, whether residing in their homelands or settled in Western democracies, is ethnocentrism and moral particularism: they stick together and good means what is good for their ethnic group." Uniform Code of Military Justice is the biggest joke and farce ever foisted on the low ranks of the military. Teach men to kill, pay them to kill and some desk warrior that has never dirtied his hands becomes self righteous.
Its the SEALS who made the complaint, not desk warriors.
That's what these SEALs signed up for but Gallagher was too much even for them.
Anyone remotely familiar with the UCMJ would not agree.
Twas the SEALS that initiated the complaints which were watered down by the rear echelon. When Gallagher finally went to trial on a watered down charge, he was acquitted on perjured testimony. "Toxic" was the word used by the SEALs to describe Gallagher. Though combat in Iraq barely fazed the SEALs, sitting down to tell Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents about what they had seen their platoon chief do during a 2017 deployment in Iraq was excruciating for them. Not only did they have to relive wrenching events and describe grisly scenes, they had to break a powerful unwritten code of silence in the SEALs, one of the nation’s most elite commando forces.
You're wrong: the crybabies don't measure up to the standard exemplified by SEAL Eddie Gallagher. He took the fight to the enemy and showed them what happens when a Good White Man is on the warpath. Poor subordinates typically blame their leaders for their own failures. Very typical behavior.
“With the exception of Whites, the rule among the peoples of the world, whether residing in their homelands or settled in Western democracies, is ethnocentrism and moral particularism: they stick together and good means what is good for their ethnic group." Not according to the men who knew him. “The guy is freaking evil,” Special Operator Miller told investigators. “The guy was toxic,” Special Operator First Class Joshua Vriens, a sniper, said in a separate interview. “You could tell he was perfectly O.K. with killing anybody that was moving,” Special Operator First Class Corey Scott, a medic in the platoon, told the investigators.
They didn't testify, therefore what they say in shady interviews with thoroughly discredited newspapers doesn't count for anything. Period. SEAL Eddie Gallagher was only found guilty of posing with a dead body, and if on a jury I would have acquitted him even for that. War is hell.
“With the exception of Whites, the rule among the peoples of the world, whether residing in their homelands or settled in Western democracies, is ethnocentrism and moral particularism: they stick together and good means what is good for their ethnic group." If anybody has a problem with what SEAL Eddie Gallagher did, then somebody had better go back in time and prosecute the American infantrymen and Marines who did this to the Japs in the Pacific Theater: https://duckduckgo.com/? q=Japanese+skulls+in+the+pacific+theater&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images “With the exception of Whites, the rule among the peoples of the world, whether residing in their homelands or settled in Western democracies, is ethnocentrism and moral particularism: they stick together and good means what is good for their ethnic group." I don't agree much much of the sentiment in these comments. First, you cannot spare Gallagher complete consideration of wrongdoing because he's a Navy SEAL unless you first discount the many accusations from about 10 other Navy SEALs. So without question, at least 1 navy SEAL has engaged in misconduct: Gallagher or his many accusers, and normally many accusers are considered more credible than one person who stands accused. 2) If it should be okay within the military for Gallagher to do what he was accused of doing, then why does the UCMJ state those accusations were prosecutable material? If you don't think Gallagher should have been prosecuted for what he was accused of, then it seems you object to the written code in the UCMJ. So change it. Remember Gallagher was not acquitted of his most serious crimes because the courts thought they shouldn't be illegal, but because they didn't find evidence of them "beyond reasonable doubt". 3) If the desired rule should be that what Gallagher was accused of -- killing civilians in foreign countries who were of no perceived threat -- should be perfectly fine, then why do we bother sending troops there instead of just nuking the entire enemy civilization? That would be the logical response but of course it won't be agreed to because we all know it is wrong and inhumane, and it's far easier to hold one's nose with people like Gallagher and look the other way with the plausible deniability that he did anything wrong -- in spite of stating academically that what he was accused of should be okay because that's what warriors do. As it is, when a military occupying a foreign country kills unarmed and non-threatening civilians at will, it only creates more animosity and hatred by those people against the USA, further endangers our military personnel, and undermines whatever the mission is supposed to be. 4) On the moral side, if our troops are to simply murder innocent people while occupying a foreign country "just because", then we are endorsing the same standard as the ISIS terrorists themselves. In which case... what's the point? We've lost the moral high ground.
Ping
The opening paragraph says... To be a volunteer, """You must be willing and able to perform BEYOND irregular and conventional warfare.""" I cannot see why that is so difficult to understand what they are telling the volunteers. Long ago, I volunteered for something unknown with many others. Then they told us, if war with Russia begins, your chances of survival are slim to none. They did say each would be given a .45 to use if you choose to do so. No one backed out. Difficult to accept self righteousness from those that do not know about what they speak.
Well, the UMCJ also says things that should not be done. If a prospective soldier is expected to adhere to one piece of writing, he should be expected to adhere to both.
Didn't that happen with Lt. Calley and My Lai in Vietnam? From what I recall it was quite a big mess. Calley is now bald headed. ;) "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke
Well, the SEALS that accused Gallagher have walked the walk. They've been on the front lines with Gallagher so I expect they do know of what they speak.
Didn't that happen with Lt. Calley and My Lai in Vietnam? From what I recall it was quite a big mess. Calley is now bald headed. ;) It happens in every war. Vietnam was a war. What we're doing now in Afghanistan and Whereeverstan is not war. It's occupation & nation building. Our troops kill and die for the will of the Deep State. As far as I'm concerned, when one country sends military troops into another country to kill people because of either their politics, culture or exercising what would be a 2nd Amendment Right if it were done by a US citizen in the USA, then that country becomes an immoral, invading and occupying military force. It's funny how people go to the movies to watch Star Wars and cheer for the rebels, then go home and turn on the news and cheer for the empire.
That they do and their days as useful Seals are over. They will be ostracized the rest of their lives. Gallagher did NOT become their leader by chance. The Navy was looking for men that would kill on command. Desk warriors in the military never get their hands dirty and are eager to hang others that do the dirty work. I lost friends that were "volunteers" during the Korean thing. Shot down by the Russians, Truman and desk warriors wrote them off as "lost at sea on a routine training flight". American civilians cared less. Desk warriors abound. Trump is NOT one. My Lai was written off by Colin Powell. He was there on the ground, understood it. The desk warriors wanted to hang Lt. Calley.
We dropped Stinger missiles to the Mujahideen for them to fight the Soviet occupation. What we are doing now in Afghanistan is that we are there so if the Pakistani's become more unreasonable we would be able to strike their nukes and take them out. So it is much more than nation building. Trump says the Taliban are difficult to deal with and that may be true. But after the Soviet Union crumbled and they left, we took their place. U.S. go-betweens are attempting to find profitable crops for the Afghan farmers other than Opium, but I am not sure how successful they have been since the Opium is so much more profitable than those other crops. And all you need to see is how Mexican Mud comes into the U.S. to know what the opioids have done to the young men and women in this country. ;) "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke
He was not following orders but acting on his own. Either the other SEALs were lying or they were telling the truth. If they were telling the truth, what should Gallagher's superiors have done about it?
Perhaps there was a failure of his superiors that led to him being in charge? Those in his unit report anything prior? I suspect not. One does NOT find a stable person that can be hired to kill on demand. Plenty of military men will risk their lives for country and a few dollars more a month. Did it myself, served with many that did likewise. I never met ONE that would kill on demand. That takes a man that is different than most, the military knows that full well. Hire and train a man to kill on command and then hang him????
If every troop and their commanders sent to fight these illegal "wars" were of the same mindset as Gallagher, they would all be would be back home in weeks or months, instead of bleeding-out and dying for decades with no end in sight.
“The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out... without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane, intolerable.” ~ H. L. Mencken
Gen. Eisenhower had Pvt. Eddie Slovik shot for refusing to fight. Refusing to kill Germans. Slovik had NOT volunteered, he was drafted, taught to kill. He was found guilty of desertion by desk warriors that called for his execution, Eisenhower, sitting in England, had him shot...AS AN EXAMPLE TO OTHERS... At the time of Bastonge, Eisenhower was snug in bed with another mans wife, in England far from the bleeding and dying. Desk warriors said Slovik was a petty criminal, school dropout, shoot him, Eisenhower did just that. The military went looking for Gallagher, to hire him to execute people, he did and went too far. Desk warriors wanted him destroyed. The military created him, they have to own him. Hypocritical bastards. Ike was one.
#2. To: Cynicom (#1)
(Edited)
The shooter WAS NOT THE RUN OF THE MILL RECRUIT OFF THE STREET.
#3. To: Ada (#0)
#4. To: Cynicom (#1)
They are trained and paid to kill people, paid by the taxpayers, you and me.
#5. To: Ada (#4)
So were the SEALS who made the complaint. They seemed to think that Gallagher besmirched their honor.
#6. To: Ada (#0)
(Edited)
-Alex Kurtagic 
#7. To: X-15, Ada (#6)
I'm betting the snitches got in under that fucking asshole Obama. Eddie Gallagher is tough and gets the job done - they're not in the business of delivering Girl Scout cookies....
#8. To: Cynicom (#7)
-Alex Kurtagic
#9. To: X-15, Ada (#8)
You don't sit behind a desk and judge him later.
#10. To: Cynicom (#9)
My friend and one other flying officer started voting not guilty.
-Alex Kurtagic
#11. To: X-15 (#10)
#12. To: Cynicom (#9)
None of them are men enough to carry a Seals lunch.
#13. To: Cynicom (#7)
YOU MUST BE WILLING TO ENGAGE IN...IRREGULAR AND UNCONVENTIONAL WARFARE...
#14. To: Ada (#12)
Its the SEALS who made the complaint, not desk warriors.
#15. To: Cynicom (#14)
Anyone remotely familiar with the UCMJ would not agree.
#16. To: Ada (#13)
(Edited)
-Alex Kurtagic
#17. To: X-15 (#16)
Poor subordinates typically blame their leaders for their own failures.
#18. To: Ada (#17)
-Alex Kurtagic
#19. To: All (#18)
-Alex Kurtagic
#20. To: Ada (#0)
#21. To: All, X-15, Cynicom, BTP Holdings (#20)
#22. To: X-15, Ada (#16)
#23. To: Cynicom (#22)
To be a volunteer, """You must be willing and able to perform BEYOND irregular and conventional warfare."""
#24. To: Pinguinite (#20)
if our troops are to simply murder innocent people while occupying a foreign country "just because", then we are endorsing the same standard as the ISIS terrorists themselves. In which case... what's the point? We've lost the moral high ground.
#25. To: Cynicom (#22)
Difficult to accept self righteousness from those that do not know about what they speak.
#26. To: BTP Holdings (#24)
#27. To: PinguiniteX-15, Ada (#25)
so I expect they do know of what they speak.
#28. To: Pinguinite (#26)
What we're doing now in Afghanistan
#29. To: Cynicom (#27)
Gallagher did NOT become their leader by chance. The Navy was looking for men that would kill on command.
#30. To: Ada (#29)
He was not following orders but acting on his own.
#31. To: X-15, Ada, 4 (#19)
#32. To: Lod, Ada, All (#31)
- Dwight Eisenhower endorses the finding of a court-martial in the case of Eddie Slovik, who was tried for desertion, and authorizes his execution, the first such sentence against a U.S. Army soldier since the Civil War, and the only man so punished during World War II.
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