Ehren Watada is a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He was the first commissioned soldier in the Army to refuse deployment to Iraq. In 2006, he refused to be deployed with his unit to serve in the Iraq War. Watada contends that the United States' invasion of Iraq was illegal, and his involvement in the war would make him party to war crimes. His 2007 court-martial ended in a mistrial,SeattlePI.com: Mistrial ends Watada court-martial (February 7, 2007) and a second trial was forbidden under Watada's Fifth Amendment rights. The U.S. Army challenges the ruling, and still seeks legal action against Watada.
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Ehren Watada Trial News
- Google News: Ehren Watada Trial
- The Honolulu Star Bulletin: Watada’s Latest Appeal Still Pending (February 9, 2008)
- "The Army Court of Criminal Appeals has ruled that Watada, a 1996 Kalani High School graduate, can be court-martialed again, but Watada appealed that decision to the U.S. Circuit Court for the Armed Forces."
- The Guardian: Watada Iraq Court Martial Hearing Threatens to Backfire on Bush (January 4, 2008)
- "Lt Watada, the first military officer charged with public dissent since 1965, faces charges of 'missing movement' and 'conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman'. If convicted, he could spend up to six years in prison."
- truthout: The Court-martial of Ehren Watada Begins (January 2, 2008)
- Army Times: Court Issues Stay in Watada Court-martial (May 21, 2007)
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Army Expects to Retry Watada (February 9, 2007)
- BBC News: Mistrial in US War Objector Case (February 7, 2007)
- ACLU: Lt. Watada to Face Reduced Charges for Political Speech (February 7, 2007)
- Common Dreams: War Objector's 'Freedom of Conscience Must Be Respected,' (February 6, 2007)
- The Indypendent: A Bellweather Trial: Ehren Watada’s Court-Marshall and the Iraq War (January 10, 2007)
