Raiders. [3] Following Scott's confession, prosecutors canceled other witnesses they had planned to call, fearing their testimony would further undermine their case. He was slated to be awarded a Silver Star during that fateful deployment in Mosul when the He insisted they all made the story up because THEY were afraid of As far as we knew, the ball was in their court and our officers would do the right thing. 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. It escalates and Warpinski is now on the case.". I lifted his head, I looked into his eyes and I stabbed him again, according to the NCIS report. He also told NCIS that Gallagher had shot at but missed another young girl in a previous incident. ", A picture taken on March 14, 2017, in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul shows a drone carrying two grenades flying in a test flight by Iraqi forces which aim to use it against Islamic State (IS) group fighters. The LPO told NCIS that Gallagher later approached him and said hed killed four women today," alleged war crimes the SO1 said he repeated to Portier and another lieutenant. [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 was definitely a pirate.. (Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images). 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. Chief Eddie Gallagher (right, in cap) takes control of a prisoner (far left), an ISIS fighter who had been wounded. [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. Military officials shorthand that as ICFM, according to an NCIS investigative action provided to Navy Times. After two weeks of testimony, Chief Edward Gallagher was found not guilty of murdering a suspected ISIS prisoner in Iraq. All appear on camera. The only thing he was convicted of was posing in a photo with the dead captive's body. 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. Eddie Gallagher Eddie Gallagher The problem was one mans insecurities, greed, and addiction. 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. 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. That was basically good time. He described Gallaghers knife as the same weapon the chief always carried in a leather sheath. How did the defense team robot that bit of evidence? The LPO indicated the platoons snipers then began shooting warning shots so that the civilians would run away and (Gallagher) would not kill them," according to the report. Must be 21+. 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. [15] The family of Abdullah, the boy Gallagher allegedly stabbed to death, was contacted by media several years after the event and claimed that they were unaware of the circumstances surrounding their son's death and that they had not been contacted by prosecutors. There is a digital trove of evidence a mile long where Eddie violated dozens of articles of the UCMJ. The LPO told NCIS that he informed both Portier and his assistant officer in charge of the platoon about the alleged murder. 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. [3], Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana on May 29, 1979, Gallagher graduated from Bishop Dwenger High School. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/why-navy-seal-eddie-gallagher-was-found-not-guilty-of-murdering-iraqi-captive, Navy SEAL acquitted of killing says he made tactical, ethical, moral mistakes, Navy SEAL Gallagher cleared of most charges, Medic in Navy SEAL case takes blame for killing Islamic State fighter, Trial of Navy SEAL charged with war crimes set to begin, Lawyers for freed Navy SEAL want war crime case dismissed. Yet few people heard about the lives saved, people liberated, or hope restored in Mosul. 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. ", Duncan Hunter supports Gallagher, Trump in Navy SEAL controversy, "Trump says he stood up to the 'deep state' by intervening in war crime cases", Anguish and Anger From the Navy SEALs Who Turned In Edward Gallagher, "From the Brig to Mar-a-Lago, Former Navy SEAL Capitalizes on Newfound Fame", "Eddie Gallagher, Navy SEAL acquitted of stabbing wounded ISIS prisoner to death, tells his story", "Eddie Gallagher Limited Series In Works By Will Staples, Working Title & The New York Times", "Navy SEAL cleared of war crimes and reinstated by Trump now says 'we killed that guy', "Eddie Gallagher's shocking claim that SEALs intended for detainee to die", "Eddie Gallagher says he and other Navy SEALs used a dying enemy fighter for medical practice with no intention of saving him", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eddie_Gallagher_(Navy_SEAL)&oldid=1152104595, This page was last edited on 28 April 2023, at 06:51. Special Operator 1st Class Josh Vriens is a former Navy SEAL sniper who served in Alpha Platoon under Eddie Gallaghers command. The SO1 told Warpinski that at first, he thought Islamic State fighters were shooting civilians. Not only did they lose the case, they had difficulty with respect to information that may have been obtained from opposing lawyers and for giving immunity in a totally incompetent fashion. [40] Four weeks later, President Trump announced over Twitter he had directed the Secretary of the Navy to revoke Navy Achievement Medals given to members of the prosecution team that oversaw Gallagher's case. 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. Gallagher openly discussed topics including his career, the raid upon his home, pre-trial confinement, legal proceedings, acquittal, retirement, and his life and family. Clip from Apple TVs documentary The Line featuring Eddie Gallagher, former Navy Secretary Richard Spencer, and Navy SEAL Dylan Dille. At no time is loyalty to each other put over loyalty to the country and mission. But Trump May Get in the Way", "Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher found not guilty on murder and attempted murder charges", "Shocking Revelation In Navy SEAL War Crimes Trial: Witness Says He Is The Real Killer", "Jurors picked for Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher's war crimes trial", "Navy SEAL Chief Accused of War Crimes Is Found Not Guilty of Murder", "Navy dismisses case against SEAL accused of covering up war crimes", "Jury to decide SEAL's punishment for posing with corpse", "Navy SEAL demoted for posing with corpse", "Congratulations to Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher, his wonderful wife Andrea, and his entire family. Eddie outing these people and the units they are in might be unprecedented in the SEAL community. Eddie Gallagher says SEALs lied in I hoped the men who were acquitted or pardoned would use their platforms to bring awareness about issues facing veterans and active-duty members. This story is all bad and just when you think it's behind us, there's another headline that brings it all back. [49] The next day (Nov. 25) Esper said that Trump had ordered him to allow Gallagher to keep his Trident Pin, so that Gallagher remained a SEAL until his retirement at the end of November 2019. Eddie was definitely a pirate.. They say its obstruction of justice or intimidating witnesses, but its really just telling the truth and telling the truth isnt obstructing justice, he said. SEALs Divided: Documentary Hunts for the We didnt focus on keeping evidence that would hold up in court. [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. Although they had the NCIS hotline number for days, legal files indicate that not one of the SEAL witnesses called it. During Alpha Platoons deployment, the SO1 had served as the lead petty officer, or LPO, and his initial statement to NCIS took the agent back to Badush a village in the suburbs of Mosul in early May of 2017, when the platoon was conducting an Advise, Assist and Accompany, or AAA, mission with Iraqi coalition forces members. According to the claim, Gallagher allegedly threatened to kill fellow SEALs if they reported his actions. Subscribe to Heres the Deal, our politics The SO1 sniper told NCIS that one of the SEAL SO1s who assisted Gallagher with the wounded detainee said the chief had begun threatening to kill mother(expletives) who accused him of wrongdoing. 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. Coming out during the day can draw out the enemy, who can be overwhelmed with firepower, said Parlatore, a former Navy surface warfare officer. Former SEAL Eddie Gallagher attacks his accusers in Truth is our best defense and we think that once everyone hears what really happened, Eddie will be exonerated.. ", By Gilday eventually partially granted the request in October 2019: he reduced the punishment from a full demotion to a one-rank demotion to special operator first class, as the jury had recommended, rather than the default demotion to Seaman Recruit (E-1). Eddie Gallagher 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. [45], Following his acquittal, Gallagher spoke publicly about the case, appearing on Fox News without authorization, and using social media to describe his superiors, including Rear Admiral Collin P. Green, the newly installed commander of the SEALS, as "a bunch of morons". According to his first lawyer, Colby Vokey, Gallagher did not pay Vokey's specified rate, and he filed an arbitration claim against Gallagher. Eddie Gallagher and the changing story When our injured partners from the Iraqi Army flooded into our casualty collection point, our medics spent their free time saving their lives. Members of Navy SEAL Team 7 Alpha Platoon in Mosul, Iraq (Photo courtesy of the Joshua Vriens). [23][24][25][26], On May 8, 2019, former Congressman Duncan D. Hunter, a Republican, showed combat video footage from a helmet camera to a group of legislators that he said exonerated Gallagher of one of the charges against him. All appear on camera. "Not a single one of us could have imagined that we would have to report a friend and mentor. [54] "The guy is freaking evil," Special Operator First (SO1) Class Craig Miller said. [5][6] He was trained as a medic, a sniper, and an explosives expert. "The guy was toxic," said SO1 Joshua Vriens. Special Warfare Operator Chief Edward Eddie Gallagher in Iraq in 2017. 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. newsletter for analysis you wont find anywhereelse. Gallaghers SEAL Team 7 superiors in California junked the Silver Star application and he wasnt going to make senior chief before his planned retirement after 20 years of service. Throughout the trial, Gallagher acted as though it was not he who had been accused of wrongdoing but the investigators, prosecutors and witnesses. [1] The defense cited two high-ranking Iraqi Army members that the detainee was "barely alive"[1] when he arrived; according to prosecution witnesses, the prisoner's leg injury did not appear serious to the initial medic who treated the prisoner, and that the medic was surprised the detainee was dead when he returned. Gallagher was accused of multiple offenses during his final deployment to Iraq and during the Battle for Mosul. Eddie Gallagher and the changing story He referred NCIS to an SO1 who served as a sniper during the deployment. Small enough to be transported in a backpack, the quiet, hovering UAVs can unleash tiny, but potent, missiles to blow up enemies, miles away from where operators are remotely piloting the drones. He will serve no further jail time. Portier, he said, gathered all of the team members together and took a photograph of the team.". And then, all of a sudden, they hit a nerve, said Timothy Parlatore, Gallaghers lead civilian counsel. [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. Jason Hull). [9], A charge of obstruction of justice was brought against Gallagher for alleged witness intimidation. Gallaghers case became a cause clbre in conservative circles, with President Trump championing his innocence. [5], The case was considered to be a "difficult"[15] one because the Navy did not begin a formal investigation for nearly a year after the reports were made and by then much of the physical evidence, such as the bodies of those alleged to be killed by Gallagher, were not recoverable. Gallagher, 40, was acquitted of murder and nearly all related charges in a court martial trial last year. When he returned from packing his gear, however, the LPO told NCIS he found Portier conducting a hasty re-enlistment ceremony for Gallagher next to the body of the dead ISIS fighter, according to the report.