Defense presents its case in court-martial of decorated Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher, charged with multiple war crimes in Iraq

NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO — Two Marines and two Navy SEALs took the stand Wednesday, June 26, as the defense team began presenting its case in the court-martial of Navy SEAL Chief Edward “Eddie” Gallagher, who is accused of the premeditated murder of a 15-year-old ISIS fighter and other war crimes during a deployment to Mosul in 2017.

In early testimony, Navy SEAL Master Chief Petty Officer Brian Alazzawi, Gallagher’s superior, confirmed he had been made aware of allegations against Gallagher in October 2017, but said the potential war crimes weren’t reported up the chain of command until April 2018, when an investigation into Gallagher’s alleged behavior was initiated.

In cross-examination, Alazzawi, a 25-year veteran with 20 years in the SEALs, said though he viewed the Mosul deployment as successful, he became aware that the platoon had concerns after their return.

“I sensed some discord from the guys,” he told a Navy prosecutor in the San Diego courtroom. “I could tell something was wrong.”

Alazzawi, who testified under a grant of immunity, said he spoke with Gallagher and Lt. Jacob Portier, and was assured the issues were just “platoon stuff.”

Alazzawi said he spoke later, in October 2017, with Special Operator Craig Miller, who was emotional when he told him about Gallagher stabbing the teen ISIS fighter and other allegations of Gallagher shooting at two non-combatants.

“He said he wasn’t ready at the time to start an investigation and he didn’t want others who were there to get into trouble,” Alazzawi said in his testimony.  Miller also said while he didn’t want Gallagher arrested, he also didn’t want to see him be awarded a Silver Star or to be in a position to lead a platoon, Alazzawi said.

Alazzawi went on in his testimony to say that several SEALS, after further discussion among themselves, approached him again in January saying the chain of command needed to be made aware of their concerns.

Wednesday’s testimony followed an effort by Tim Parlatore, Gallagher’s lead defense attorney, to get the case against his client dismissed after the prosecution wrapped up its presentation on Tuesday.

Navy Judge Capt. Aaron Rugh ruled that the circumstances did not rise to the high standards required for a dismissal.

Marine Gunnery Sgt. Joshua Vanderpool, who served with Gallagher during the Mosul deployment, took the stand and commended the Navy SEAL for his leadership. Vanderpool said he never heard Gallagher talk about shooting civilians or stabbing anyone.

He described Gallagher as intense and someone who wanted his SEALs to work. In one instance, Vanderpool said, Gallagher was upset when his SEALs left their weapons dirty.

“Chief Gallagher was frustrated with his guys, but he never seems to show that openly,” Vanderpool said. “He embodies a Marine platoon sergeant. You could tell his roots came from being a Marine. That’s why we immediately hit it off. That’s what stood out – not only was he willing to work, but his aggressive nature.”

Retired Marine Lt. Col. Andrew Christian was the first witness to take the stand Wednesday. He gave the jury a sense of what the fighting climate was like in Mosul, calling it “the most kinetic display I’ve seen in 12 years.”

Christian served as the commanding officer of the 1st Marine Raider Battalion and was overseeing the Special Operation Task Force to which SEAL Team 7 – Gallagher’s platoon – was attached.

“We spent every day with Iraqi forces,” Christian said. “We were engaged in combat on a daily basis.”

He described the environment as “speed, confusion and chaos.”

A prosecutor questioned Christian about the rules of engagement, to which Christian said: “We don’t shoot unarmed civilians, ever.”

Christian said he had daily interaction with Gallagher and Portier and attributed much of the mission’s success to them.

In response to allegations that Gallagher shot at two non-combatants, Special Warfare Operator Joshua Graffam told the jury he had never witnessed Gallagher “take any shot he shouldn’t have taken.”

Graffam recalled an incident in which he served as spotter for Gallagher in a tower near the Tigris river.

“I called out two males who were sneaky-peaky, tactically moving from one side of the road to the other,” Graffam said. “I called up to Eddie to see if he was tracking.

“He hit him in the upper torso and he turned and ran off,” Graffam said.

He said the man was dressed in black like other ISIS fighters.

Gallagher, 40, a highly decorated special warfare operations chief, has pleaded “not guilty” to all charges in a case that has drawn national attention since Sept. 11, 2018, when he was arrested at Camp Pendleton’s Intrepid Spirit Center, where he was undergoing a medical screening.

He has two bronze stars and has served on eight deployments.

Gallagher, who served as a medic, also is accused of posing for a photograph with the teen ISIS fighter’s body while he and other SEALs held a reenlistment ceremony.

He faces seven counts that include premeditated murder and attempted murder related to his 2017 deployment to Iraq. Gallagher also is accused of shooting two civilians from sniper perches in Iraq that year.