Trump Pardons Three Service Members in War Crimes Cases
US President Donald Trump pardoned three armed service members Friday, who were were accused or convicted of war crimes.
Trump ordered the release of Clint Lorance, a former army lieutenant who had been convicted of murder for ordering soldiers under his command to open fire on three unarmed Afgan men, including two who died.
The president also cancelled murder charges against Major Mathew L. Golsteyn, an Army Special Forces officer whose trial was set to begin next month.
And he reversed the demotion of Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher, a Navy SEAL who was acquitted of murder, but convicted on a lesser charge in a war crimes case this summer, the New York Times reports.
Trump ordered the release of Clint Lorance (pictured with his family in a social media post made Friday), a former army lieutenant who was convicted of murder for ordering soldiers under his command to open fire on three unarmed Afgan men, including two who died
The clemency granted defied rulings made by military leaders seeking to punish the service members, all three who also had been favorites among conservatives who see them as heroes who should not have been prosecuted.