IN SUPPORT OF LIEUTENANT PANTANO -- (House of Representatives - May 04, 2005)
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. JONES of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, Saturday was the final day of the article 32 hearing for a Marine facing murder charges for actions he took against Iraqi insurgents in self-defense. A year ago in Iraq, Second Lieutenant Ilario Pantano made a split-second decision to shoot two Iraqi insurgents who refused to follow his orders to stop their movement towards him. Two and a half months later a sergeant under his command, who never even saw the shooting and who was earlier demoted by Pantano for his lack of leadership abilities, accused him of murder. Now the case is in the hands of a hearing officer who must determine whether Lieutenant Pantano will face a court-martial.
Mr. Speaker, I stand here today, as I have many other nights, in support of this bright young lieutenant. I have always maintained the innocence of Lieutenant Pantano, and I believe last week's hearing produced information that will ultimately prove his innocence.
During the hearing, it became clear that the sergeant who accused Lieutenant Pantano, Sergeant Coburn, disobeyed orders to not grant interviews to the media on this case. At one point he left the stand after the hearing officer read him his rights and explained he could face charges for disobeying orders. When he finally did return to testify on Saturday, he is reported to have said "I don't know" or "I can't remember" over 50 times. His story simply could not hold up under cross-examination.
Mr. Speaker, it is clear that this man's testimony cannot be considered credible. How can these charges move forward when the primary witness is someone who did not actually see the shooting and who cannot definitively stick to one recollection of the series of events that took place? If that is not enough evidence, let me also quote briefly from Navy Medal Corpsman George Gobles, the only other person present at the time of the shooting and the prosecution's other main witness who took the stand. He called Pantano, and I quote, "a damn good leader." He testified, "I felt the safest with, you know, this platoon, because more than anything because of Lieutenant Pantano, his leadership."
Likewise, Major Brian Neil, the operations officer for Pantano's battalion, testified that Lieutenant Pantano was one of the finest second lieutenants he has ever known during his 17-year career in the corps. He recalled the day of the shooting, testifying: "To me, it was a good day. We killed two obvious insurgents."
Mr. Speaker, as I have said many times before, Lieutenant Pantano is by all accounts an exceptional Marine. I hope that last week's proceedings will finally bring out the truth in this case. I pray that the end is near so that the Pantano family can move forward with their lives. Hopefully, the facts can bring closure to this serious and sad mistake in the history of the Marine Corps.
In conclusion, I continue to ask my colleagues to research the case and consider supporting House Resolution 167, my bill to help support Lieutenant Pantano as he faces this battle. I encourage them to visit his mother's Web site at www.defendthedefenders.org and learn more about this fine young Marine. I would be proud to call him my son or my son-in-law.
I ask as I close today, Mr. Speaker, that God please bless Lieutenant Pantano's family, to please bless our men and women in uniform and their families, and I ask God to continue to bless America.
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