USD Magazine Spring 2007

civilians — Puckett was livid. “He shot his mouth off and said that these Marines killed in cold blood,” he recalls. “That’s a congressman telling people that they were guilty. So I got the full story out there by talking to a contact at The Washington Post.” “It will forever be (Wuterich’s) position that everything they did that day was following their rules of engagement and to protect the lives of Marines," Puckett told the newspaper in June 2006. “I gave that reporter the story of what really happened in Haditha,” he says. “These guys are innocent.” Inside the MCRD courtroom, Staff Sgt. Small is all apologies. It’s his job to escort media on and off the base, and the pro- ceedings are running behind schedule. “These cases are notori- ous for starting late,” he confides. “There’s a lot of hurry up and wait.” He settles down to read a tattered paperback. Glancing out the window, it’s hard not to notice that the grounds of MCRD have a lot in common with a certain well-manicured college campus. There are stucco buildings topped with curved terra-cotta tiles,

defense attorney he’s hired to represent him against serious charges: involuntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment and dereliction of duty. Grave as those charges are, Roughan is in good hands. To his left, the attorney with silver-tinged hair curling over the collar of his tailored shirt is Neal A. Puckett, a retired Marine lieutenant colonel. In his entire career as a military criminal defense attorney, he’s never lost a case. “I always win. I’ve never had a situation where I’ve lost since I was in private practice.” Puckett is enjoying himself. “Of course, a win doesn’t always mean acquittal.” Puckett is a man who likes to talk, to persuade, to pontificate — all excellent attributes in a lawyer. There’s an appealing fearlessness to him; it’s easy to imagine that if you needed someone to defend your life in court, you'd be in the right hands if Puckett were on the case. He recalls that even as a boy in Indiana, he was fascinated by courtroom scenes. “I’d watch Perry Mason-type shows,” he recalls, when pressed. “My favorite movie was ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ I’m still interested in how

there are perfectly groomed expanses of lush green lawns and most everywhere you look, there are fantastically well-toned humans. But soon enough, the proceedings are underway. After some discus- sion about witness lists, the prosecution lays out its case, which asserts that the death of Staff Sgt. Andrew Jason Gonzales during water- survival training at the depot training pool in August of 2005 was the fault of swimming instructor Roughan, one of two instructors charged in the case. “My client pleads not guilty on all charges,” says Puckett. During his opening statement, the prosecutor asserts that Gonzales drowned because Roughan wanted to send a message, and that his rough handling during rescue escape drills resulted in the Marine drown- ing while surrounded by his classmates and under supervision of instruc- tors. While the mood in the courtroom is serious, there’s a sense of genial- ity between the attorneys on both sides of the aisle and the judge. In the spectator gallery, a young woman wears a photo of a square-jawed Marine around her neck. It’s of her late husband, Gonzales. One by one, Marines testify about what happened that day in the pool. They tell of Gonzales’ initial refusal to participate in the exercise, his reluctance to take part in games of underwater water polo, of Roughan towing him toward the deep end to take part in one-on-one

people come to break the law, and I’m interested in human motivation.” Puckett doesn’t shy away from high-profile clients. In just the past few years, he’s represented Army Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, who was in charge of the Abu Ghraib prison when the notorious prisoner abuse scandal occurred. He’s currently representing Marine Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich in the Haditha investigation, and filed a defamation lawsuit against Congressman Jack Murtha (D-PA) in connection with his remarks regarding the Haditha case. “Karpinski and I hit it off while we were doing research, in case charges were brought,” Puckett recalls. When “60 Minutes” did a story about Abu Ghraib, she wanted an opportunity to correct the record, and Puckett made a few calls. Within hours, the pair were talking to every big media outlet in New York. “We did Diane Sawyer, you name it. We spent two days going from studio to studio, talking to all the top news shows.” In the end, Karpinski wasn’t charged, but she did get demoted in a manner that still makes Puckett’s blood boil — via a statement released by the Army. “When you get fired in the military, it’s a face-to-face situa- tion,” he says, adamant. “Always. You simply don’t expect treatment this shabby by the Army.” When Murtha opined publicly on the Haditha investigation — which involves accusations that Wuterich led a squad that massacred Iraqi

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