Former US Marine cleared of manslaughter in California

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2008

RIVERSIDE, California (AFP) — A former US Marine was acquitted of manslaughter here Thursday in the shooting deaths of four unarmed Iraqi prisoners during 2004 fighting in Fallujah.

Jose Luis Nazario, 28, was found not guilty of all charges after a landmark trial at the US District Court in Riverside, southeast of Los Angeles.

The case made US legal history as the first time a former serviceman had been tried in a civilian court for alleged crimes committed during combat.

Nazario, who had left the Marines by the time he was arrested last year, denied charges of voluntary manslaughter, assault with a dangerous weapon and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

Prosecutors told the jury that Nazario had ignored clear rules about how to treat...