The officer who presided over a pretrial hearing for a Marine suspected in the murder of two Iraqis has submitted his recommendation on whether the case should go to court-martial, a military spokesman said Friday.
Maj. Mark E. Winn has sent the paperwork to Maj. Gen. Richard Huck, said 2nd Lt. Barry Edwards, a spokesman for the 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune.
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The hearing officer has recommended that formal accusations of premeditated murder and other crimes against 2nd Lt. Ilario Pantano be withdrawn, stating there is no evidence to support prosecution.
Huck will review the recommendation and decide how to continue in the case of Pantano.
Prosecutors in the case allege that Pantano killed two suspected insurgents in April 2004 because he believed they were launching mortars at his troops.
Pantano, a former Wall Street trader who rejoined the Marines after the Sept. 11 attacks, says he acted in self-defense after the men moved toward him.
Winn had been given a week after the close of the hearing April 30 to send his recommendation, but requested an extension.
"There's no timeframe for [Huck] to make a decision," Edwards said Friday. "He will carefully review the evidence and the investigating officer's recommendations before making a decision."
Pantano, 33, continues to work at Lejeune as an assistant training officer helping to develop training regimens.
© 2005 Associated Press.
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