Camp Pendleton Marine Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III will face another trial for the 2006 death of an unarmed civilian in Hamdania, Iraq.
The Los Angeles Times reported Monday that the commanding general of Marine Corps Forces Central Command, Lt. Gen. Robert Neiler, determined Hutchins should be tried for the same crime once again.
Some background: Hutchins led an eight-man squad that kidnapped and killed unarmed Iraqi civilian Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Hamdania in 2006. A military court in 2007 convicted Hutchins of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, making a false official statement, and larceny.
But in June 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces overturned Hutchins' murder conviction. The court agreed with Hutchins' assertion that his constitutional rights were violated when he was withheld access to his attorney during his interrogation.
Hutchins has been free since his release from the brig at MCAS Miramar in July 2013. He lives with his wife and children in Oceanside.
