24 men, women and children killed - get 3 months in prison (max)

A US soldier court-martialled over the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians faces three months' imprisonment at most after admitting dereliction of duty, meaning manslaughter charges were dropped.

A US soldier court-martialled over the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians admitted dereliction of duty, but manslaughter charges were dropped yesterday.
Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich had faced nine counts of voluntary manslaughter and other charges over killings in the Iraqi town of Haditha in 2005. He now faces three months' imprisonment at most.
He pleaded guilty to one count of negligent dereliction of duty, and will face a sentencing hearing today, said a spokesman for Camp Pendleton in California, where the 31-year-old went to a military trial earlier this month.
The Marine, who accepted responsibility for giving orders which led to the deaths, could also be reduced in rank to private, and have his pay cut by two-thirds for three months.
"Staff Sergeant Wuterich accepted responsibility... and agreed and admits that he gave a verbal order to shoot first, ask questions later, or don't hesitate to shoot, and words to that effect," said spokesman Joe Koppel.
"That verbal instruction caused his Marines to (not) positively identify targets in the two homes. And now, at the sentencing phase, he'll be held accountable for those actions."
Wuterich's attorney Neal Puckett said his client - who had been reported to be considering a plea deal last weekend - made the final decision.
"This was his decision and his decision alone," he told the North County Times. "Staff Sergeant Wuterich believed this was the right and honorable thing to do."
In all, 24 Iraqi civilians were killed - 19 in several houses along with the five men who pulled up in a car in the Iraqi town of Haditha on 19 November, 2005.
The victims included 10 women or children killed at point-blank range. Six people were killed in one house, most shot in the head, including women and children huddled in a bedroom.
The other seven Marines charged in the case have been exonerated through various legal rulings, fuelling anger in Iraq, where authorities had pushed for US troops to be subject to Iraqi justice before the US pullout in December.
Yesterday's plea deal was announced at the start of what would have been the third full week of the court-martial at Camp Pendleton, where Wuterich has been an active serving Marine pending the long-delayed legal action against him.