Former Marine sues Rep. John Murtha over Haditha comments. Yes!
PITTSBURGH – A Marine Corps lance corporal sued U.S. Rep. John Murtha for slander on Thursday, saying the Congressman damaged his reputation by saying Marines killed women and children “in cold blood” in Haditha, Iraq, in November 2005.
Justin Sharratt filed the federal lawsuit in Pittsburgh. Sharratt claims the comments Murtha, a high-ranking Democrat, made on various news shows in May 2006 also violated his constitutional rights to due process and presumption of innocence.
“Sharratt, in being labeled repeatedly by Murtha as a ‘cold-blooded murderer,’ and by Murtha outrageously claiming that the Haditha incident was comparable to the infamous (My Lai) massacre of Vietnam, has suffered permanent, irreversible damage to his reputation,” the lawsuit states.
Oh! It’s like Christmas coming three months early! I’ve been waiting for John Murtha to be held accountable for his defamation of all these Marines.
LTC Bill Russell (U.S. Army, retired)
Bill Russell shares his thoughts on the lawsuit.
MEDIA RELEASE
September 25, 2008
RUSSELL FOR CONGRESS COMMITTEE
CONTACT: Peg Luksik
(814) 525-9171Murtha Opponent Comments on Justin Sharratt Lawsuit
Russell Says “The Reputations of These Marines Have Been Tarnished”(JOHNSTOWN, PA) – Republican candidate in the 12th PA Congressional district Bill Russell commented today on the lawsuit filed against incumbent Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) by a Marine from the district. The suit was filed by LCpl. Justin Sharratt of Canonsburg, PA, in Pittsburgh Federal Court and seeks relief for the stripping of Mr. Sharratt’s Constitutional rights, specifically his right to the presumption of innocence and due process, as well as relief for slander.
The lawsuit was prompted by Murtha’s widely reported comments of Marines at Haditha, Iraq “killing innocent civilians in cold blood.”
“As a career military officer and a 9-11 Pentagon survivor, I have a personal interest in seeing the record and reputations of these courageous Marines cleared,” said Russell. “It is contemptible that any member of Congress abuse the power of his office to advance a political agenda by unjustly attacking our brave men and women in uniform. Lance Corporal Sharratt was declared innocent by a properly convened military court, and he has every right to seek justice for the denial of his Constitutional rights to due process and the presumption of innocence, and for the damage done to his reputation. I sincerely hope that Congressman Murtha will use this opportunity to admit his mistake and take responsibility for the harm his false accusations have done to Justin Sharratt and his family. Justin’s right to justice goes beyond politics. I call upon Congressman Murtha to deal honorably with the Sharratt’s, and not attempt to hide behind election-year rhetoric and the very office whose power he abused to deny them this right”.
Check out some local video in PA on the Murtha slander issue.
Don’t forget to do what you can to help Murtha’s challenger, Bill Russell, this year in PA.
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Others posting on this topic: Michelle Malkin, Jules Crittenden, Democrat=Socialist, Beltway Blips, Public Opinion Online, J’s Cafe Nette, Barracuda Patrol!, Right Minded Online, Hang Right Politics, Axis of Right, WitSnapper | The Blog, Nicholas Fitzgerald
Explore posts in the same categories: National PoliticsTags: Bill Russell, Election '08, Haditha Marines, John Murtha, Justin Sharratt
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