» Justice Dept. drops case against war resistor Watada

MAN OF PEACE: Justice drops criminal charges against Ehren Watada, the Iraq war's first high-profile resistor.

The Department of Justice has dropped its case against 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, a war resistor who refused Iraq deployment in June 2006 and denounced President George W. Bush’s decision to invade as illegal and immoral.
In Feb. 2007, military judge Lieutenant Colonel John Head halted Watada’s case following possible inconsistencies concerning a “stipulation of fact” agreed before the hearing. The decision led to a mistrial, ending Watada’s court marshal. The Army appealed, but a judge said Watada could not be tried again on the same charges, as it would violate his right to be free of double jeopardy.
The Justice Department is dropping its appeal of that judge’s decision.
“Because there are no longer any criminal charges pending against Lt. Watada, and because (his) military service has been extended far beyond his normal release date, he anticipates that he will soon be released from active duty,” Watada’s attorney, James Lobsenz, said in a media advisory published Wednesday. “He plans to return to civilian life and to attend law school.”
“Settle set aside two specifications of the same charge — conduct unbecoming an officer — which stemmed from public statements Watada made against the war and President Bush,” reported Vanessah Ho for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
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