A top Navy SEAL officer is defying President Donald Trump’s defense of Chief Petty Officer Eddie Gallagher by sending his controversial case to a military review board which could result in his ultimate expulsion from the SEALs.
On November 15 Trump reversed the demotion of Gallagher, a Navy SEAL who acquitted of murder this summer, and restored his title of Chief Petty Officer. The president also pardoned two other officers jailed for war crimes as well.
Trump’s grant of executive clemency has been harshly criticized over violations of international humanitarian law.
Despite the Commander in Chief's pardon, Rear Admiral Collin Green, the head of the Navy Special Warfare Command, is taking the matter before a military board.
'This is a review of their suitability to be a SEAL,' an unnamed Navy officer said to CBS News, adding the review has the backing of both the secretary of the Navy and the chief of Naval Operations.
Top Navy SEAL Rear Admiral Collin Green (left) is sending Eddie Gallagher's (right) case to a military review board which could result in his expulsion from the SEALs
On November 15 Trump reversed the demotion of Chief Petty Officer Gallagher, a Navy SEAL who acquitted of murder this summer. Despite Trump's act of clemency for Gallagher, Green is sending the officer's case before a military board for review
The officer said that this is an administrative action which is not affected by Trump's pardon last week.
Gallagher be submitted for review, as will members of his platoon Lieutenant Commander Robert Breisch, the troop commander; Lieutenant Jacob Portier, the platoon officer in charge; and Lieutenant Thomas MacNeil, the platoon assistant officer in charge.
While the president declared his decision was an act of mercy, he’s been harshly criticized and the UN condemned his actions as a 'disturbing signal' to military forces worldwide.
Former Joint Chiefs Chairman General Martin Dempsey tweeted that without evidence proving innocence of injustice, the 'wholesale pardon…signals our troops and allies we don’t take the Law of Armed Conflict serious.' He called it an 'abdication of moral responsibility.'
Gallagher (above) faced court martial specifications for shooting civilians in Iraq, killing a captive enemy fighter with a hunting knife, and threatening to kill fellow SEALS if they reported him during his 2017 deployment while serving as Chief Petty Officer of a platoon. He was acquitted by a military jury in July of all charges except for a minor count of bringing discredit on armed forces for posing for a photo with the corpse of the captive he allegedly killed
Trump reversed the demotion of Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher (pictured with his family from a social media post made Friday)
A statement from Gallagher was posted on social media, thanking the president. 'There are no words to describe how grateful my family and I are to our President - Donald J Trump for his intervention and decision', the post reads
Gallagher faced court martial specifications for shooting civilians in Iraq, killing a captive enemy fighter with a hunting knife, and threatening to kill fellow SEALS if they reported him during his 2017 deployment. He was Chief Petty Officer leading a platoon at the time.
He was acquitted by a military jury in July of all charges except for a minor count of bringing discredit on armed forces for posing for a photo with the corpse of the captive he was accused of slaughtering.
For his crime he was demoted to Petty Officer First Class and four months in prison, but was released for time served awaiting trial.
Trump, who had intervened in the Gallagher case before, restored his Chief Petty Officer title.
After the pardon, Gallagher shared a message on social media thanking the president writing: 'There are no words to describe how grateful my family and I are to our President - Donald J Trump for his intervention and decision.'
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