Justin was honorably discharged from the U.S. Marine Corps. Justin was and always will be a Marine, not an ex-Marine.
Justin was exonerated of all charges involving the Haditha incident in a military Article 32 hearing (the civilian equivalent of a grand jury.) The evidence exonerated my son, and the general officially dismissed the charges because the evidence showed him innocent. Full disclosure of this evidence and the Article 32 testimony appears on the Defend Our Marines Web site.
My son owes no apology to these Iraqis. He honorably defended himself when four insurgents tried to take his life in Haditha, Iraq, on Nov.19 2005. When you point a weapon at a U.S. Marine in a combat zone, bad things happen. In this case, the bad guys died, and my son is with me today.
My family and Justin feel an apology from Murtha would be too little too late. Murtha needs to apologize to the American people. He denied the Haditha Marines their rights of due process and the presumption of innocence. Murtha threw the Constitution of the United States "under the bus" to further his political agenda. How much more of the Constitution is he willing to trash to further his political agenda?
The American people are awaiting his answer.
Darryl Sharratt
Canonsburg
Why they ban
street parking
I am writing in response to the letter from Lawrence J. Nader of Canonsburg. Since this is my second letter in a month written to defend and/or explain Cecil Township's position, I want it known that I am not a spokesman for the local government. Because of my background as a former Cecil Township supervisor, and because I am proud to say I live here, I simply want to right a wrong. A simple call to the township police department would have given Mr. Nader the opportunity to do the same.
Since the origin of the community, it has been the request of the Homeowner's Association of Georgetown Estates to eliminate on-street parking in the community. In the past, such parking made it difficult for emergency personnel to get close to the scene where their services were requested. In one near-tragic instance, a fire truck was delayed because the driver had problems navigating between cars parked on both sides of the street.
By adhering to the wishes of the residents of Georgetown Estates, the township and its police department have been chastised by Mr. Nader and others. They are simply doing their duty. Perhaps Georgetown Estates could follow the lead of Mr. Nader's hometown and place parking meters in the areas that are safe for parking. Georgetown Estates is inhabited by families, the majority of which have a right to establish rules and regulations for the entire community. This group of citizens is a welcome addition to our small community of Lawrence, and we who live nearby applaud and obey said rules. So should we all.
Richard L. Barnes
Lawrence
Pets are treated
like rubbish
When I read the article Jan. 10 about a man acquitted of shooting his three dogs in the head and only being convicted of scattering rubbish after dumping their bodies on the road, it only further convinced me that our justice system is a travesty. Rubbish? Now our pets are considered rubbish along with being disposable. The fine imposed on this man was more than the cost of humanely euthanizing his dogs, which he said he could not afford to do. Plus, he had to go to jail for 30 days. He should stay there for years. How I would have loved to have been on that jury. He said he shot the dogs because ... There is no acceptable because! It is disgusting and infuriating.
Judy Schury
Brownsville