Ex-Marine acquitted in Fallujah killings

RIVERSIDE, Calif., Aug. 28 (UPI) -- A former Marine was acquitted Thursday in California of killing four Iraqi civilians while he was a squadron leader.

The verdict, reached after less than six hours of deliberations, was the first concerning a former soldier in a civilian court for alleged crimes committed in the military, The Riverside Press-Enterprise reported. Jose Luis Nazario Jr. was tried in federal court in Riverside because he had left the Marines.

Nazario, who was a sergeant in the Marines, was charged with voluntary manslaughter, assault with a dangerous weapon and using a firearm during a violent crime for his actions during Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah in November 2004. The investigation only began two years later after a member of the squad who now faces charges mentioned the killings during a job interview with the Secret Service.

The defense put on no witnesses during Nazario's trial. His lawyer argued that the prosecution did not prove any crime had been committed.

The last evidence the jury heard was a tape recorded conversation between Nazario and a member of the squad made during the investigation in which Nazario apparently admitted ordering the shootings.