Ehren Watada

Iraq war resister

Ehren Keoni Watada (born 1978) is a former first lieutenant of the United States Army, best known as the first commissioned officer in the US armed forces to refuse to deploy to Iraq. In June 2006, Watada refused to deploy for his unit's assigned rotation to Operation Iraqi Freedom, saying he believed the war to be illegal and that, under the doctrine of command responsibility, it would make him party to war crimes. At the time, he was assigned to duty with the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, part of the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, as a fire support officer. He was brought before a court martial in 2007 which ended in a mistrial; the Army subsequently discharged him under "Other Than Honorable Conditions" (OTH) in 2009. An OTH discharge is the least favorable type of administrative discharge from the Army, and is reserved for a "pattern of behavior that constitutes a significant departure from the conduct expected of Soldiers of the Army."

Watada was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Robert Watada and Carolyn Ho. His father served for 10 years as executive director of Hawaii's Campaign Spending Commission and himself refused to serve in the Vietnam War. Ehren Watada attended Punahou School, then transferred in his sophomore year to Kalani High School, where he played cornerback on the varsity football team. An Eagle Scout, Watada graduated from Hawaii Pacific University magna cum laude in 2003 with a BA in finance. Watada joined the Army after the war in Iraq had begun, stating that he was motivated "out of a desire to protect our country" after the September 11 attacks. He was commissioned by the Army's Officer Candidate School, on November 20, 2003, at Fort Benning, Georgia, as a second lieutenant of field artillery—one month after Security Council Resolution 1511 authorized a multinational force in Iraq. Watada served one year in South Korea, and was subsequently reassigned to Fort Lewis, Washington.

Watada's article 32 hearing to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to move forward with a general court martial was held on August 17, 2006. The investigating officer Lt. Col. Mark Keith presided. The Army prosecutor, Capt. Dan Kuecker, described Watada's actions as contemptuous of President George W. Bush, and argued that Watada's public statements hurt morale in his unit. In that speech, Watada called on his fellow soldiers to stop fighting. Eric Seitz, Watada's civilian counsel, and Capt. Mark Kim, Watada's military lawyer, raised the issue of the legality of the war. Over the prosecutor's objections, Seitz and Kim called three witnesses to question the legality of the war. On September 15, 2006, the Army announced that it had preferred another charge against Watada of "conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman". This brought the potential prison term faced by Watada to eight and a half years in prison if convicted of all charges. Six and a half of these years would have been for statements that he made concerning the war rather than his refusal to deploy to Iraq; "missing movement" is punishable by a maximum of two years. Keith justified the additional charge by asserting that "contempt for the President and the suggestion that US soldiers can stop the war simply by refusing to fight borders on mutiny and sedition. Seitz asserted that the Army added the new charge to make a public example of him: "He's not doing anything other than saying things he believes to be true, and that we believe are true. This makes it that much clearer that this is just a political prosecution, and that's really all this case has been about from the beginning." Keith recommended Watada for court martial on all charges, even as he said that he thought that Watada was "sincere in his beliefs". Of the court martial recommendation, Seitz accused the Army of trying Watada without looking seriously at his arguments and that of the other experts appearing at the trial about the legality of the war. On November 9, 2006, the U. S. Army announced the decision of the Fort Lewis commander, LTG James Dubik, that Watada would face a court martial. The charges of "contempt toward officials" were dismissed without comment. Without the "contempt for officials" charges, Watada could face up to four years confinement, two for missing movement and two for statements that he made, as well as a dismissal, and forfeiture of all pay and allowances, if convicted of the remaining charges. Watada's defense team had intended to demonstrate that the war was illegal by maintaining that the required congressional approval was granted only on the basis of the existence of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in Iraq and ties between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda. They also intended to subpoena witnesses to testify and to cite the Nuremberg Principles, which require soldiers to disobey illegal orders. However, on January 16, 2007, Judge John M. Head ruled that Watada would not be allowed to present any defense based on the Nuremberg principles, stating that the legality of a war was a "nonjusticiable political question" and ruling that the order that Watada had refused was lawful. Watada was also forbidden to present a First Amendment defense. Seitz said about the rulings that "they are essentially saying there is no right to criticize, which we all know is not true", and that they intend to appeal any conviction to the federal courts. At a pre trial press conference Watada remarked that he believed it his duty to refuse to fight in the war, and that he was prepared to face prison time for his beliefs. Panel selection was conducted on the first day, narrowing a pool of ten officers down to seven, ranking from captain through lieutenant colonel. The court martial panel is similar to a jury in a civilian trial, but due to rules provided in the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), panels consist of service members equal or senior in rank to the defendant. On the second day of his court martial, the prosecution presented opening arguments stating that Watada had "abandoned his soldiers and disgraced himself and the service" and began calling witnesses. The first witness called was Watada's former Battalion Commander, Lt. Col. Bruce Antonia. He testified that he learned of Watada's feelings about the war soon after Watada concluded, in early January 2006, that the war was illegal. Antonia stated, "I told him I was concerned. I did not want this to turn into a big media event." His chain of command counseled him on the consequences of his actions if he refused to deploy and used his position to make a spectacle of the issue. Lt. Col. William James, another officer who counseled Watada, testified that he found Watada's offer to serve in Afghanistan in "direct conflict" with Watada's written statement or stipulation that he did not want to deploy as a "tool" of the Bush administration.

A new court martial was set for March 19, 2007 rescheduled for July 23, 2007, and then postponed until October 9, 2007, as an appeal based on the issue of double jeopardy delayed the case. Following the ruling on July 5, 2007, by Lt. Col. John Head, again presiding over Watada's court martial, that double jeopardy did not apply, Watada's attorneys appealed the ruling to the U. S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals and then to U. S. civilian court. On October 5, 2007, U. S. District Court Judge Benjamin Settle stayed further proceedings until October 26. The Army challenged the injunction. Watada was represented by Ken Kagan and Jim Lobsenz with the Seattle law firm Carney Badley Spellman, who had replaced Eric Seitz. On the issue of double jeopardy, Joe Piek, spokesman for Fort Lewis, argued that the rules for courts martial (MCM Rule 915(c)), allow the Army to try Watada again, on the theory that the mistrial is not a decision and that the mistrial was not due to prosecutorial misconduct. Others, including the military defense attorney assigned to Watada, as well as Kagan and Lobsenz, argued that double jeopardy attached at the start of the presentation of evidence. Rule 907(b)(2)(C) of the MCM states that jeopardy attaches at the "beginning of the presentation of evidence on the merits," raising the possibility that jeopardy attached prior to the declaration of mistrial. The second court martial was stayed in October 2007 by U. S. District Judge Benjamin Settle, on grounds of double jeopardy. Settle issued an order stating that Watada's "double jeopardy claim is meritorious" and that no evidence to the contrary was presented. The Army challenged the injunction, and Judge Settle ruled on October 21, 2008, that Watada cannot be retried on three of the five counts, but abstained from deciding whether the remaining two counts of conduct unbecoming an officer may go forward. On November 8, 2007, the injunction was extended by Judge Settle, who held that Lt. Watada's double jeopardy claim was meritorious.

On October 2, 2009, the Army discharged Watada "Under Other Than Honorable Conditions". An administrative discharge, "Under Other than Honorable Conditions" discharge is the least favorable type of administrative discharge from the Army. According to AR 635 200, an OTH discharge is reserved for a "pattern of behavior that constitutes a significant departure from the conduct expected of Soldiers of the Army."

In 2012, Watada founded and became the part owner of the Bachi Burger restaurant in Las Vegas.