http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-marine16aug16,1,497311...

Former Marine charged in killings of 8 Iraqi prisoners
The Murrieta resident, who worked as a Riverside police officer until last week, is expected to appear in court today.
By Joe Mozingo and Tony Perry
August 16, 2007 

The U.S. attorney in Los Angeles has filed charges against a former Marine sergeant for his alleged role in the killing of eight unarmed Iraqi prisoners during a November 2004 battle in Fallouja, according to military and civilian sources.

Jose Nazario, a Murrieta resident who worked as a sworn officer in the Riverside Police Department until his termination last week, is expected to appear in a federal courtroom in Riverside today.

The criminal complaint and affidavit detailing the exact charges are under seal but are expected to be made public at that time.

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney declined to comment. Nazario could not be reached for comment.

The former sergeant is being charged in civilian court because he is no longer a Marine. Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents are examining allegations against other members of Nazario's squad, who are still in the Marine Corps, but referred Nazario's case to the U.S. attorney, sources said.

The investigation involves the same company -- Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Regiment -- that is the focus of the worst alleged atrocity in Iraq, the killing of 24 civilians in Haditha on Nov. 19, 2005.

Marines have called the house-to-house fighting in Fallouja the most intense urban combat since Vietnam. One senior Marine officer who was in Fallouja said he was concerned that Nazario was being tried in a civilian court, where the jury might not "understand the reality of combat, understand the reality of Fallouja."

In three recent courts-martial at Camp Pendleton involving Marines accused of war crimes in Iraq, all the jurors were Iraq veterans, most of them from infantry battalions.

All three cases resulted in convictions, but two juries opted to release the Marines without additional prison time and the third gave a sentence that was half what the prosecutors sought.

Military investigators first became aware of the Fallouja incident when a member of the squad, Cpl. Ryan Weemer, took a polygraph examination as part of his bid to join the Secret Service.

In answer to a routine question -- if he had been involved in unjustified killings -- Weemer disclosed the prisoner killings. The disclosure touched off the Naval Criminal Investigative Service probe.

A spokesman for the service declined to discuss the investigation.

Sources say Nazario passed lie detector tests when he was applying for jobs with the Los Angeles Police Department and Riverside police.

Steven Frasher, a spokesman for the Riverside Police Department, confirmed that Nazario was terminated Aug. 7, but said he could not comment on the reasons for Nazario's departure or whether it was linked to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation.

"When it comes to personnel matters and investigations being handled by other agencies, there is really not much we can say," Frasher said.

Frasher said Nazario was employed by the department since November 2005, including his recruitment period. As a probationary police officer, he was in the field for some of that time but was still undergoing training, Frasher added.

Frasher said all recruits undergo a polygraph test before they are hired, but he said Nazario was not asked whether he took part in "wrongful killings." Nazario enlisted in the Marines in September 1997 and left as a sergeant in October 2005.

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joe.mozingo@latimes.com

tony.perry@latimes.com

Times staff writers Maeve Reston and Julian Barnes contributed to this report.

Were is SACKETT ??? I'm sure he would have some "canned" response to all this. Maybe he finally say the light.

Hmmm let’s see here. Nazario Passed his police polygraph which included the question "Have you committed an undisclosed serious crime?"
Then low and behold he was acquitted in Federal Court for the crimes charged? .  Could it be he was telling the truth on his polygraph?

I guess that would be one more piece anecdotal evidence that polygraph works. 

Another case showing more proof that polygraph works; than Dr. Maschke or notguilty1 have that their own polygraphs were wrong.  

Gee, I'll bet if he had been convicted George and all of his disciples would be here posting today.  Thumping their collective chest and declaring polygraph a failure. I guess you guys are just gonna lose this one quietly, huh?

Sancho Panza

As their final piece of evidence, prosecutors played the recording of a phone call between Nazario and Sgt. Jermaine Nelson, one of two Marines in Nazario's squad facing charges at Camp Pendleton.

During the call, recorded at the request of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Nelson sought to get Nazario to incriminate himself.

On the tape, Nelson, using a derogatory word for the Iraqis, asked Nazario who gave the order to kill the prisoners. Nazario replied, "I did."

He then told Nelson they had no time to process the Iraqis as prisoners because "we were moving."

"What we did wasn't illegal. . . ," Nazario said. "You can't play Monday-morning quarterback."

In interviews before they retained counsel, [Nelson and Weemer] said that, upon orders from Nazario, they each killed a prisoner and that Nazario killed two.

Quote:

As a matter of law, Nazario was innocent before he went to trial and his trial failed to overcome argument to the contrary. There is nothing left to assume. Why don't you write the jurors and tell THEM that their conclusions are unreasonable.

I think it is implicative that his squadmates still refused to testify after being granted immunity for everything except perjury.

I'm sorry Dr. Maschke while you are certainly entitled to your opinion, whether supported by information or fantasy, as to whether or not he committed the crimes with which he was charged; branding him guilty solely to support your opinion regarding is polygraph is improper argument and you know it. The court's finding clearly supports the results of his polygraph.  What do you have to support your claims about yours?