RALEIGH, N.C. – The lawyer for a U.S. Marine accused of deserting his unit a decade ago in Iraq is asking for another chance to dissuade the military from proceeding with a trial.
In the request for a new Article 32 hearing for Wassef Hassoun, defense attorney Haytham Faraj says prosecutors have a circumstantial case and are going to have a hard time finding witnesses to testify, in part because the case is so old.
Faraj also says military authorities waited until after the hearing to turn over evidence that sheds new light on Hassoun's initial disappearance.
The case began in June 2004 when Hassoun disappeared from a base in Fallujah, Iraq. He says he was kidnapped. The Marines say he deserted.
A Marines spokesman said he couldn't comment.
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