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A jury found decorated Navy SEAL Edward “Eddie” Gallagher not guilty Tuesday on almost all charges he was facing, including murder and attempted murder, in the killing of a teenage Islamic State member in Iraq.
Gallagher was accused of stabbing to death a 15-year-old ISIS fighter in 2017 and posing with the corpse for photos.
As he awaited the charges to be read, Gallagher, 40, bounced lightly on his feet, appearing nervous, but dissolved into joyful tears once the verdict came through, tightly embracing his wife, Andrea, who has publicly championed him throughout the case as they both cried. Also seated in the gallery were Gallagher’s attorneys, brother and parents, all of whom he hugged.
“I’m happy and I’m thankful,” Gallagher told reporters after the verdict as he joked with his legal team that “it’s Independence Day,” his freedom coming days before the July 4th holiday.
“Suffice to say, huge victory, huge weight off the Gallaghers, huge victory for justice,” Gallagher’s attorney Marc Mukasey said adding that his client cried “tears of joy, emotion, freedom, absolute euphoria and proud of the process.”
“I was feeling like we’re finally vindicated after being terrorized by the government that my husband fought for for 20 years,” Andrea Gallagher said. She also said she intends to “continue to fight for the war heroes of this country” and hopes to see Naval Special Warfare Group 1 Commodore Capt. Matthew D. Rosenbloom resign, among other things.
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