The fate of Special Warfare Chief Edward Gallagher is in the hands of a jury after the prosecution and defense made closing arguments Monday.
Navy Cmdr. Jeff Pietrzyk, the lead prosecutor, said evidence of Gallagher’s guilt was shown by Gallagher himself.
“The government’s evidence in this case is Chief Gallagher’s words, Chief Gallagher’s pictures, Chief Gallagher’s SEALs,” Pietrzyk said.
Lead defense attorney Tim Parlatore pointed to a lack of forensic evidence, adding that the accusations against his client came from disgruntled subordinates who did not like Gallagher’s tough leadership style.
“This case is not about murder, it’s about mutiny,” Parlatore said.
A jury made up of five Marines and two sailors will decide if Gallagher, 40, is guilty of murder, attempted murder, and conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline for posing with a corpse in photographs. Some of Gallagher’s fellow Navy SEALs accused him of stabbing an injured teenage ISIS fighter to death and shooting at an elderly man while deployed to Iraq in 2017. Navy prosecutors need only five of the seven jurors to secure a conviction against Gallagher, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The case was full of drama before the trial even started. Damning accusations painting Gallagher as a bloodthirsty killer made national headlines. Reports that President Trump was considering him for a pardon split the military community. The discovery of Navy prosecutors embedding tracking software in email correspondence with the defense led to the dismissal of lead prosecutor Capt. Chris Czaplak, a reduction in the maximum possible sentence, and Gallagher’s release from pretrial confinement.
At trial, the Navy presented Gallagher as an unruly SEAL who bragged to other SEALs about killing the teenage fighter. Prosecutors presented pictures of Gallagher holding up the head of the fighter like a trophy alongside his remark that he “got him with my hunting knife.”
The most notable moment, however, occurred while the prosecution presented its case, when Special Operator First Class Corey Scott claimed it was he, not Gallagher, who was ultimately responsible for the death of the fighter. Though he admitted he saw Gallagher stab the teen, Scott said he asphyxiated him by placing his thumb over the fighter’s breathing tube. Scott said he killed the injured fighter to save him from being tortured by Iraqi soldiers.
The Navy told Scott through his lawyer he could be charged with perjury. Scott was given immunity by prosecutors before the trial in exchange for his testimony. Pietrzyk told the jury Scott lied to protect Gallagher.
An Iraqi general and a Marine cast doubt on whether Gallagher actually stabbed the fighter during the defense’s presentation of evidence. Contradicting claims Gallagher shot an old man, the SEAL’s spotter testified that he and Gallagher thought they were shooting at an ISIS member, who was more likely aged 40 to 50.
If found guilty, Gallagher faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole. Navy Judge Capt. Aaron Rugh removed the possibility of a sentence of life without parole before the trial began.
