Walter B. Jones: “I spoke last night about a marine that I have in my prayers each and every night, Second Lieutenant Ilario Pantano.…”

“I spoke last night about a marine that I have in my prayers each and every night, Second Lieutenant Ilario Pantano. Lieutenant Pantano has served this Nation in great honor in both the first and second Gulf wars. From my personal experience with him, I know that he is a dedicated family man and a man who loves the Corps. During his service in Iraq last year, Lieutenant Pantano was faced with a very difficult situation that caused him to make a split-second decision to defend his life. He felt threatened by the actions of two insurgents under his watch and, in an act of self-defense, he had to resort to force. Two and one half months later, a sergeant under his command, who never saw the shooting, accused him of murder. Lieutenant Pantano now faces charges of two counts of murder. Mr. Speaker, what is happening to this young man is an injustice. In a combat fitness report, his superiors praised his leadership and talent, and he was by all accounts an exceptional marine. Mona Charen, a respected Washington journalist, wrote the following about this case: ``Obviously, the United States cannot turn a blind eye to war crimes. If a soldier lines up civilians in front of a pit, My Lai style, and massacres them, he would richly deserve, and every self- respecting American would demand, a court martial.'' She further states, ``But, good Lord, by what possible standard can this be called murder? Pantano was in the middle of a war zone, not a vacation on the Riviera.…”