President Trump said he was “glad” to help out after Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher was found not guilty of war crimes by a jury.
“Congratulations to Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher, his wonderful wife Andrea, and his entire family. You have been through much together. Glad I could help!” Trump said Wednesday on Twitter.
Congratulations to Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher, his wonderful wife Andrea, and his entire family. You have been through much together. Glad I could help!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 3, 2019
Trump’s comment came after he considered pardoning Gallagher, but later opted to wait until after he was tried to make his final decision.
A jury of five Marines and two sailors found Gallagher not guilty Tuesday. Gallagher, 40, was accused of unlawfully stabbing an injured teenage ISIS fighter to death and shooting at civilians in Iraq in 2017.
“Our stance from the very beginning of this has been that Eddie needs to have a fair trial and we’re going to stand behind him no matter what because he’s our brother. And the courts have prevailed,” Brad Bailey, president of the Navy SEALs Fund, told the Washington Examiner. “We understand that it’s a very contentious accusation and one that deeply divided our community. And I hope that everyone can learn a lot from this on both sides and we can get back to taking care of business.”
Gallagher was found guilty of unlawfully taking a photo with a corpse of the ISIS fighter he was accused of killing.
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