CAMP PENDLETON, California — The ten-year jail term for a US Navy medic for being convicted in the killing of an Iraqi civilian in cold blood was reduced Friday, October 6, to just 12 months after a plea deal.
The judge has also nullified his earlier sentencing that called for a dishonorable discharge for Melson Bacos, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Bacos and seven Marines were charged with kidnapping 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad, a father of 11, killing him and placing an AK-47 and shovel next to his body to suggest he was trying to plant a roadside bomb.
Bacos said that during a patrol to look for roadside bombs, squad leader Lawrence Hutchins plotted to go to the suspect's house to "get him".
"If the plan failed, the Marines would find someone else," Bacos said.
After failing to locate their intended target, Marines raided the house next door which happened to be Awad's.
The Marines bound Awad's hands and feet, and gagged him before firing three shots into his head.
Hutchins fired the first few shots, then other Marines fired rounds, Bacos said. Another soldier, lance corporal Robert Pennington, wiped fingerprints off the assault rifle, he said.
"Hopefully that (Iraqi) family will forgive us for what we have done," Bacos told reporters after the court ruling. "I tried to stop others from killing."
"I wanted to be part of the team. Now I have to live with this for the rest of my life. I feel like my honor is gone. I apologize to my country."
Too Little
Prosecutor Nicholas Gannon argued Bacos should be given no less than 10 to 15 years behind bars and a dishonorable discharge, describing his actions as "too little, too late".
"They force-marched this man, on a walk of death, almost a thousand meters," Gannon told the court. "(Bacos) followed behind, watching Mr. Awad limp on."
Bacos' lawyers said that with time in custody already served, their client could be freed by the end of the year.
Two of the seven Marines involved in the case, John Jodka and Marshall Magincalda, pleaded not guilty to murder on Wednesday, October 4.
Jodka, a 20-year-old private, will stand trial on March 5, following the completion of Magincalda's court-martial, which gets underway on February 1.
Marine commander General James Mattis has already said the death penalty will not be sought for the two soldiers.
Five other Marines involved are yet to stand trial.
The case is one of a cluster involving charges of US troops killing Iraqi civilians.
Last November, US soldiers killed 24 Iraqi civilians, including seven women and three children, near Haditha as they had gone on rampage after their patrol was attacked.
Iraqis recently told Reuters they were unsurprised by US killing of civilians, complaining that such grisly aggressions were part of pattern of US behavior in their country.