WASHINGTON, April 14 (UPI) -- A U.S. appeals court panel in Washington ruled Tuesday that Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., is immune from suit for comments made about a Marine in Iraq.
Marine Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich sued Murtha for alleged slander after he called actions by Wuterich's squad in Haditha, Iraq, a "massacre." A federal judge refused to grant Murtha immunity under the Westfall Act, even though the Justice Department had certified him as a covered U.S. employee.