Military criminal investigators raided Marine Corps defense counsel offices

Marine Corps to review raid on law offices
By Associated Press
Published: May 9, 2014

Lawyers in the offices are handling cases for offenses ranging from an unauthorized absence to murder. One of the most prominent cases handled by defense lawyers at Camp Pendleton is that of Lawrence Hutchins III, a Marine sergeant who is being retried in an Iraq war crimes case on charges that include murder and obstruction of justice.

SAN DIEGO — Military criminal investigators raided Marine Corps defense counsel offices at Camp Pendleton, opening files during a 2½-hour search and potentially compromising scores of cases, the attorney who oversees Marine defense lawyers in the region said Friday.

Investigators raided the offices May 2 in search of a cellphone tied to a case being tried at the base, north of San Diego, Lt. Col. Clay Plummer told The Associated Press.

“This is just unacceptable,” said Plummer, the Marine Corps’ regional defense counsel for the West. “Just think of the U.S. federal Marshals or FBI raiding a public defender’s office, that’s what this is the equivalent to. It’s crazy.”
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