[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 502 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 502

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to 
the senseless and unwarranted criminal prosecution of 2nd Lt. Erick J. 
                     Anderson, United States Army.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 19, 2005

    Mr. LaTourette (for himself and Mr. Ryan of Ohio) submitted the 
  following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to 
the senseless and unwarranted criminal prosecution of 2nd Lt. Erick J. 
                     Anderson, United States Army.

Whereas Erick J. Anderson grew up in Twinsburg, Ohio, and earned an engineering 
        degree in 2002 from Youngstown State University, where he also played 
        football under Coach Jim Tressel;
Whereas following the attack on our Nation on September 11, 2001, Anderson felt 
        a call to duty and selflessly enlisted in the United States Army so he 
        could serve his country after one of the darkest moments in America's 
        history;
Whereas in June 2004, 2nd Lt. Anderson and the 41st Infantry of Fort Riley, 
        Kansas, were sent to Iraq to participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom;
Whereas in the early morning hours of August 18, 2004, 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson 
        led a platoon in Sadr City, Iraq, and came upon a garbage truck that 
        appeared to be dropping roadside bombs; a firefight ensued and several 
        Iraqi citizens were killed or injured, including a gravely injured 16-
        year-old Iraqi teen who witnesses described as badly burned with his 
        intestines hanging out;
Whereas 2 members of Anderson's platoon, Staff Sgts. Johnny Horne and Cardenas 
        Alban, each shot the Iraqi teen to put him out of his misery and termed 
        it a mercy killing; the United States did not take possession of the 
        body or perform an autopsy; Horne and Alban were charged on September 
        27, 2004, with premeditated murder, and their Article 32 hearings began 
        in late October 2004;
Whereas on November 15, 2004, platoon leader Anderson was charged with 
        premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit premeditated murder for the 
        death of the Iraqi teen who was shot by Anderson's subordinates; no 
        allegation was made that 2nd Lt. Anderson fired his own rifle into the 
        victim and 2nd Lt. Anderson was never incarcerated;
Whereas 2nd Lt. Anderson asserted his total innocence and stated that he did not 
        witness, authorize, or order the shooting of the Iraqi teen; a vigorous 
        legal defense was mounted for his Article 32 hearing at Camp Liberty in 
        Baghdad, which was scheduled for December 14, 2004, and later continued 
        until January 19, 2005;
Whereas on December 10, 2004, Horne, who had admitted shooting the Iraqi teen, 
        pleaded guilty to one count of murder and one count of conspiracy to 
        commit murder in a plea bargain; he was sentenced to three years in 
        prison (two years suspended), and given a dishonorable discharge;
Whereas on January 4, 2005, all charges were quietly dropped against 2nd Lt. 
        Anderson without prejudice, meaning they could be refiled at a later 
        date, and 2nd Lt. Anderson returned to combat in Iraq in command of a 
        mortar platoon with full patrol and raid duties;
Whereas on January 14, 2005, Alban, who also admitted shooting the Iraqi teen, 
        became the second person convicted of murder; he was convicted by court-
        martial of one count of murder and one count of conspiracy to commit 
        murder; he was sentenced to one year in prison and given a dishonorable 
        discharge;
Whereas on January 18, 2005, there was a public announcement of the dismissal of 
        murder charges against 2nd Lt. Anderson;
Whereas on January 27, 2005, Mr. LaTourette of Ohio wrote to Secretary of 
        Defense Donald Rumsfeld and questioned the decision to put Anderson back 
        in combat with the legal proceedings still hanging over his head, and 
        urged the military to charge Anderson or fully dismiss the charges;
Whereas in February 2005, 2nd Lt. Anderson remained in combat in Iraq in command 
        of a mortar platoon with full patrol and raid duties and no charges were 
        filed or refiled;
Whereas on March 9, 2005, Mr. John W. Miller, II, Sr. Legislative Counsel at the 
        Pentagon, responded to Mr. LaTourette of Ohio and wrote ``. . . a 
        Soldier's commander determines the duty responsibilities of his 
        subordinates'' and that Anderson was ``presently performing duties as 
        directed, and in accordance with the presumption of innocence'';
Whereas in March, April, and May of 2005, 2nd Lt. Anderson remained in combat in 
        Iraq in command of a mortar platoon with full patrol and raid duties and 
        no charges were filed or refiled;
Whereas on May 5, 2005, Spec. Brent May of the 41st Infantry was convicted by 
        court-martial of one count of premeditated murder for the shooting death 
        on August 28, 2005, of an Iraqi civilian in Sadr City, Baghdad; May was 
        sentenced to five years in prison and given a dishonorable discharge; 
        the United States did not take possession of the victim's body or 
        perform an autopsy;
Whereas on May 13, 2005, Sgt. Michael Williams of the 41st Infantry was 
        convicted by court-martial of one count of premeditated murder and one 
        count of unpremeditated murder for the shooting death on August 28, 
        2005, of an Iraqi civilian in Sadr City, Baghdad; he was sentenced to 
        life in prison and given a dishonorable discharge; the United States did 
        not take possession of the victim's body or perform an autopsy;
Whereas on June 13, 2005, 2nd Lt. Anderson and the 41st Infantry were redeployed 
        to Fort Riley, Kansas, after completing a one-year tour of duty in Iraq 
        and participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom;
Whereas in June, July, and August 2005, no charges were filed or refiled against 
        2nd Lt. Anderson;
Whereas in September 2005, prosecutors at Fort Riley, Kansas, ``hinted'' to 
        Anderson that his legal problems would go away if he agreed to plead 
        guilty to one count of dereliction of duty; no formal plea bargain was 
        offered and 2nd Lt. Anderson told prosecutors he had done nothing wrong 
        and would not plead guilty to any charges; 2nd Lt. Anderson was told by 
        prosecutors they would ``charge him with everything they can think of'' 
        and ``see if anything sticks'';
Whereas on October 3, 2005, nearly nine months to the day after murder charges 
        were quietly dismissed, murder charges were refiled against 2nd Lt. 
        Anderson and additional charges were also levied; 2nd Lt. Anderson was 
        charged with two murders of Iraqi citizens, one on August 18, 2004, and 
        one on August 28, 2004, and prosecutors alleged that he shot the victims 
        with his own rifle; 2nd Lt. Anderson was also charged with conspiracy to 
        commit the two murders, dereliction of duty, conduct unbecoming an 
        officer, and making a false statement by telling investigators in 
        September 2004 that he heard no third shot fired in the death of an 
        Iraqi civilian on August 28, 2004;
Whereas 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson, who faces life in prison or the death 
        penalty, has again professed his total innocence and states emphatically 
        that he did not murder, witness the murder, conspire to murder, or order 
        the murder of the Iraqi civilians on August 18, 2004, or on August 28, 
        2004; he also has denied making a false statement, engaging in conduct 
        unbecoming an officer, or being derelict in his duties; he plans a 
        vigorous defense of the senseless and false charges that have been 
        brought against him;
Whereas in his annual Officer Evaluation Report that covers the period of the 
        offenses detailed above, 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson's superior officers 
        evaluated his performance from October 30, 2003, to October 29, 2004; 
        they suggested that he ``needs to be in a position of greater 
        responsibility now,'' should be promoted to 1st Lieutenant ``now'' and 
        should be promoted ``ahead of peers''; they stated that--

    (1) ``2LT Anderson's performance has been outstanding. As my newest 
Platoon Leader, 2LT Anderson's ability to quickly learn his role as a key 
leader in the Charlie Company has been refreshing.'';

    (2) ``As the junior lieutenant in the company, 2LT Anderson was tasked 
as the Unit Movement Officer for the company. Under his leadership the 
planning, preparation, and packaging of all company equipment was executed 
flawlessly and set the standard for the battalion. His ruthless attention 
to details left the company 100% ready to deploy to Iraq.'';

    (3) ``While in Sadr City, Iraq, 2LT Anderson led his platoon on 
numerous major combat operations, i.e. Iron Fury, Stalwart Fury II, 
Stalwart Swarm, and Stalwart Flood. Also he led his platoon on numerous 
mounted and dismounted patrols without a KIA (killed in action). This is 
truly a testament to his ability to lead troops in combat.'';

    (4) ``2LT Anderson has quickly learned what it means to be a leader in 
combat. He needs to be in a position of greater responsibility now. 2LT 
Anderson would make an outstanding Company Executive Officer. Promote to 
1LT now.''; and

    (5) ``Mentally tough and physically fit, 2LT Anderson is in the top 50% 
of all lieutenants that I senior rate. Erick has operated in one of the 
toughest areas in the Baghdad Area of Operations and has led his platoon 
well. He is one of my top picks for a specialty platoon. 2LT Anderson will 
be a great Company Commander in the near future. Promote ahead of peers.''; 
and

Whereas 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson continues to love his country, loves the Army, 
        and wants to return to Iraq to participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson was defending the cause of 
        freedom, democracy, and liberty and his actions of August 18, 
        2004, and August 28, 2004, did not cause the deaths of Iraqi 
        civilians; he did not order the deaths of Iraqi citizens, did 
        not witness the deaths of Iraqi civilians, is not derelict in 
        his duties, and did not make false statements;
            (2) the United States Government has already secured four 
        murder convictions for the deaths of the two Iraqi civilians on 
        August 18, 2004, and August 28, 2004, and the United States 
        Government knows definitively that at least three of the 
        convicted defendants shot the victims;
            (3) there should be the highest standard of proof before 
        the United States takes seriously any allegation that an 
        outstanding, respected, and well-trained Army officer would 
        allow or condone the intentional killing of unarmed or 
        incapacitated persons in combat;
            (4) 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson should be commended for 
        refusing to cave under enormous pressure or admit guilt when he 
        knows he is innocent of all charges; and
            (5) the United States Government should dismiss all charges 
        against 2nd Lt. Erick J. Anderson relating to the deaths 
        referred to in paragraph (1).
                                 <all>