Only Following Orders
Posted on | February 13, 2007
Marine Cpl. Trent Thomas has withdrawn his guilty plea in his murder-kidnapping court martial, opting out of a deal that would have given him no more than a life sentence. Thomas now says he was following lawful orders:
The charges stem from the slaying of 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad, who was dragged from his home and shot in Hamdania [Iraq] last year. Thomas said on the second day of his sentencing hearing that he wanted to withdraw the plea made through a pretrial agreement. A judge granted his request.
Prosecutors said they planned to file new charges.
“Sir, when my country gives me an order, I follow it,” Thomas told the judge, Lt. Col. Tracy A. Daly. He said the order came from his squad leader, Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III, and others higher up the chain of command…
Thomas, of Madison, Ill., was one of a squad of seven Marines and a sailor accused last year of hatching a plot to kill an Iraqi in the town of Hamdania. Four others pleaded guilty to lesser charges. Thomas, the squad’s second in command, was the first to plead guilty to murder.
