Motive A Major Factor In Case Against Marines

Thursday, December 21st 2006, 2:53 pm

By: News On 6

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (AP) The biggest U-S criminal case involving civilian deaths in Iraq will hinge on motive and investigators are raising the possibility of revenge in the deaths of 24 Iraqis in Haditah.

Eight Marines, including Lance Corporal Stephen Tatum of Edmond, are charged.

At a news conference announcing the charges military officials would not say what they believe prompted the 2005 killings. But investigators suggest the men were in a fury over a roadside bombing that killed another Marine.

Defense attorneys say their clients were responding to a perceived threat with legitimate force.

Tatum and three other enlisted men are charged with unpremeditated murder. Four officers who were not there are accused of failures in investigating and reporting the deaths.

The most serious charges were brought against Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich who's accused of killing 12 civilians and ordering the murders of six more.