The chief prosecutor in the case of Navy SEAL Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher was removed from the prosecution team by a military judge on Monday.
Capt. Aaron Rugh ordered Cmdr. Christopher Czaplak to be taken off the case after he admitted to using tracking software without authorization on emails from the defense in order to find the source of leaks to the media.
The defense accused Czaplak of spying on their emails and called for the prosecution to be removed or have the case dismissed. Navy spokesman Brian O’Rourke said in a statement Monday another Navy lawyer would take over as lead prosecutor.
“Chief Petty Officer Gallagher is entitled to a fair trial and the Navy is committed to upholding that principle,” O’Rourke said.
Although Rugh refrained from stating if Czaplak breached ethical or professional standards, he said the possibility of an investigation into the matter warranted Czaplak’s removal from the case. Rugh said Marine Corps lawyer Capt. Conor McMahon will not be removed from the case, but it’s unclear if he will remain on the prosecution team.
The trial is scheduled to start next week, but could be pushed back because of Czaplak’s removal.
Gallagher was charged with shooting unarmed civilians and killing an enemy captive with a knife during a deployment in Iraq. Gallagher pleaded not guilty and was released from pre-trial custody last week.
Gallagher’s attorney Timothy Parlatore said his client was thrilled to be released.
“He spent … 19 years of his life fighting for our freedom, and now he finally [got] to spend a night with his own freedom,” Parlatore said.
