Cpl Wilcox court martial - Sydney NS

[dapaterson]

And things may get even more interesting, from a procedural point of view.  The defence has filed a motion in Federal Court asserting that the court martial is improperly constituted:

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Somnia/1733208/story.html

Earlier in the day the defence surprised military judge Cmdr. Peter Lamont by informing the court an application had been filed with the Federal Court in Halifax accusing the court martial as being improperly constituted because it does not include non-commissioned officers.

 

[ENGINEERS WIFE]

Soldier apologized to fallen comrade: witness
Updated Fri. Jun. 26 2009 5:48 PM ET

The Canadian Press

SYDNEY, N.S. -- Cpl. Matthew Wilcox held his dying friend in his arms and apologized as Cpl. Kevin Megeney slumped to the floor of their shared tent in Afghanistan, bleeding from a gunshot wound to the chest, a witness told Wilcox's court martial Friday.

Wilcox, a 23-year-old reservist from Glace Bay, N.S., has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, criminal negligence causing death and negligently performing his military duty in death of Megeney, a 25-year-old reservist from Stellarton, N.S.

The prosecution team, which opened its case Thursday, is trying to prove Wilcox killed Megeney through careless use of a 9-millimetre Browning handgun. But they must first prove that he fired the shot that killed his close friend.

The military court has heard from two witnesses who said the two soldiers were apparently playing a game of quick-draw when Wilcox's gun went off.

On Friday, one of the first people to enter the tent after the shot rang out, Master Cpl. Matthew McKay, described in detail what he saw on the evening of March 6, 2007.

His testimony represents the first eyewitness account relayed in open court.

As well, McKay's recollection of Wilcox's apology is important because the prosecution contends it represents an admission that he fired the gun.

McKay, a slight man with a close crewcut, told the four-member military panel that he was off duty at Kandahar Airfield when he and some comrades heard a gunshot nearby.

"It sounded like a 9-millimetre," he told the court martial, being held in a makeshift courtroom at the garrison in Sydney, N.S. "We had a general idea of where it came from."

At first, he said he thought it was a accidental discharge, but then he heard someone scream: "Oh God! Someone help."

McKay, who now works as a bodyguard with high-ranking officials in Kabul, said he was the second person into the tent as he and others rushed in to see what had happened.

"There was still smoke in the air," he recalled. "You could smell it."

He said he saw Wilcox propping up Megeney on his right side, the wounded man bracing himself with an outstretched arm.

At that point, McKay ran out of tent, grabbed a first aid kit from a tactical vest and returned to help his comrade.

"I was just trying to talk to him, best I could," he testified.

"But he couldn't talk."

McKay was asked if Wilcox said anything.

"Corporal Wilcox said, 'C'mon Kev. C'mon Kev. I'm sorry," McKay testified.

McKay said Megeney stopped breathing and another soldier tried to revive him by using mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

He said he could see blood bubbles coming out of what they thought was the entry wound -- a small hole above Megeney's right nipple.

Another soldier, who identified himself as a "combat lifesaver," entered the tent and took over, checking Megeney's vital signs.

"He just said, `He's got to get to a hospital now or he's not going to make it," said McKay.

They called for a stretcher and lifted Megeney.

"That's when we saw blood on the floor, where he was laying," said McKay.

He said they then ran 200 metres to a nearby medical facility.

McKay said he left Megeney at that point and went back to the tents, where he said he saw Wilcox talking to the section commander.

He was asked to describe Wilcox's demeanour.

"He seemed shocked or overwhelmed by what was happening," McKay said.

At the front of the courtroom, which is usually a military bar, McKay's dramatic account appeared to take its toll on Megeney's parents, Dexter and Karen.

Dexter Megeney usually sits ramrod straight in his chair during the proceedings, but as the graphic details emerged, he leaned forward, put his hands on his knees and stared at the floor. His wife sat motionless, her hand on his leg.

Master Cpl. Kyle Keigan, the first witness at the military trial, said Wilcox told him what happened over drinks in Sydney several months after the shooting.

Keigan testified that Wilcox revealed that the two off-duty soldiers began to play a game of quick-draw in the tent when the weapon went off, but that he didn't know it was loaded.

Fetterly has said the evidence will show Wilcox had loaded the weapon with a magazine and the pistol's safety catch was not engaged when the weapon went off "while playing a game in a tent."

The military prosecutor said all soldiers within the sprawling NATO base are required to unload their weapons into ammunition barrels once they are off duty and inside their tents.

The court has heard this was a mandatory practise, even though soldiers in Wilcox's platoon carried special, UN-issued cards that said they were exempt from the rule.

Fetterly also noted that while soldiers are required to carry an unloaded firearm when they are off duty, the weapon's magazine -- the container that holds the bullets -- must be removed, rendering it incapable of firing.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090626/wilcox_trial_090626/20090626?hub=Canada

 

[Doom]

I know it's been a while...
But RIP...  iper:

 

[GAP]

Canadian soldier says he shot friend in self-defence
Updated Fri. Jul. 24 2009 2:18 PM ET The Canadian Press
Article Link

SYDNEY, N.S. -- A soldier accused of shooting and killing a colleague in a tent in Afghanistan over two years ago says he felt his life was threatened by someone when he whirled and fired his weapon.

Cpl. Matthew Wilcox took the stand in his own defence Friday in his manslaughter trial in Sydney, N.S., and told the four military jurors that he heard someone cocking a pistol.

He told a hushed military courtroom that "he just reacted," and turned quickly, drawing his gun from his holster before shooting.

Wilcox says he only realized seconds later that he had shot one of his best friends, Cpl. Kevin Megeney.

"I felt my life was threatened and lethal force was the minimum force needed," said Wilcox.

"There was a weapon pointed at me."

He said he realized it was Megeney two seconds later.

"Only after the recoil of my weapon did I realize it was him," he added.

"Everything happened so quickly, in less than two seconds. I was just reacting to a threat against my life."

Wilcox, 24, of Glace Bay, N.S., pleaded not guilty to charges of manslaughter, criminal negligence causing death, and negligent performance of duty in the death of Megeney, 25, of Stellarton, N.S.

The prosecution has argued that Wilcox was playing a game of "quick draw with Megeney on March 6, 2007. "

Wilcox said in Afghanistan, many people carry weapons, and he regarded any sound of a gun as a potentially deadly threat.

For days afterward, he said he felt shock and emptiness.

Wilcox said when he came back to Canada, deep grief and sadness set in over the death of Megeney.

"He was a really good guy," he said.

"He was probably my closest friend in Afghanistan. ... We lived together for almost a year and saw each other almost every day."

Asked if he believed he was playing a game of "quick draw," where soldiers see who is the quickest to bring the weapon from their holster, he replied firmly, "No."

Wilcox's appearance in his own defence followed 19 days of testimony by 25 witnesses called by the prosecution.

Earlier testimony in the court martial suggested the two reservists were playing "quick draw" in their tent at Kandahar Airfield, when a Browning nine-millimetre pistol went off and hit Megeney in the right side of his chest.
More on link

 

[1feral1]

I was not there, nor do I know the time of day this happened, but I shared a room in an old delapitated former Republican Guard barracks in Baghdad, with 5 other blokes, and there was all sorts of cocking of weapons an handling of such all the time, night or day, as war is a 24 hr thing.

I am sorry, but I don't by his rather 'lame' excuse for shooting a mate. I am sure there is more to this.

OWDU

 

[Jarnhamar]

I am sorry, but I don't by his rather 'lame' excuse for shooting a mate. I am sure there is more to this.

OWDU

Yup. Pathetic. Talk about dishonouring the dead.
He whirled around and shot because he heard a weapon being cocked? Inside the wire at their tent lines?
His lawyer should have told him how stupid that sounds. After reading that lame excuse I have no sympathy for Cpl Wilcox.

 

[Kat Stevens]

It's genius.  He's building the groundwork for a stress/mental breakdown defence.  Pathetic, but genius.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

I thought this POS was a low-life for having a loaded wpn where he shouldn't have in the first place which ended up with him killing someone.

But this is truly the bottom of the barrel.  Wilcox you aren't worth the shit I flushed down the toilet this morning.

I can't find the words to describe how I feel knowing he is playing the "feared for my life" card. 

An embarassment to the CF, the Army, the Army Reserves, 36 Brigade and 2 NSH. 

RIP Cpl Megeney. 

 

[ENGINEERS WIFE]

Okay, being a civvie, not knowing anything about guns, Cpl Wilcox story seems like a big pile of poo.

It doesn't make sense.

If everytime he heard a weapon being cocked and "he just reacted" wouldn't that mean a lot of other soldiers being shot?  I am assuming this is not his first time hearing that. 

And doesn't the military train you to look down the gun and see who's holding it?

Seems to me like he f#*cked up royally and instead of just saying sorry, I f#*cked up, and taking the consequences he's trying to justify shooting his friend.

This must be very hard for Cpl. Kevin Megeney family, to lose their son and then to have to go through this.  It's a shame.

 

[Jammer]

RUBBISH!!!!
F**&ing coward!
I've seen so much of this sh*t from reservists that aren't properly trained or held to account when they are called out.

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

Folks, he is just doing what happens thousands and thousands of times everyday in every courtroom in the country.

Spend a day in court some time and your day will be torn between outright giggling, wanting to throw up, and/or just wanting to rip heads off.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

RUBBISH!!!!
F**&ing coward!

Agreed!

I've seen so much of this sh*t from reservists that aren't properly trained or held to account when they are called out.

Jammer, let's not paint the entire PRes because of Cpl Wilcox.  Having served in sub-units and the HQ of 36 CBG, I can say MOST of its soldiers aren't of the sort he is.  I've never seen someone f**k up and then point the blame at someone else to this extent before.  That he is blaming the man he killed for his own grave mistake sorta kicks at something inside me.  It took me awhile to figure it out today, but I've come to realize he is dishonouring "loyalty" in a way I've never seen before.

I just think we shouldn't use this as a stepping stone against the PRes as a whole, the Army, or the CF.  This is about Cpl Wilcox, his lack of spine and loyalty and honour.

 

[X-mo-1979]

I'll be honest I don't know rules and regulations like some,but discussing a incident involved in a current military court don't seem right to me.Anyone?

 

[Arctic Acorn]

That's a pretty big brush you're using to tar reservists with, Jammer. I think any one of us know of an example where a CF member did something negligent with a weapon, be it a regular force member or reservist. In this case, Cpl. Megeney and his family paid an extremely high price for it. I won't comment too much on Cpl. Wilcox as the matter is still before the court, but I do think he may have committed to something that he's going to have to take to bed with him for the rest of his life. I hope he's prepared for the consequences of that.

As for being held to account for one's own actions, again, poor judgment is not the sole province of the reserve force. Duty, Honor, Integrity, and Discipline are something ALL CF members should instill in themselves and others. Again, we've all seen examples where a few (from either component) have forgotten that. Let's not bring components into this. Its ugly, and that in today's environment where up to 20% of rotations (according to a 2008 Ombudsman's report) are reservists who serve in all areas of the theatre with distinction, it's patently untrue.

If anything, I hope we can keep this as a reminder of just how important weapons safety is. If remembering what happened to Kevin prevents one person from doing something negligent with a weapon, then there is (as small as it may be) a silver lining to this tragedy.

RIP, my friend, and I hope your family finds peace in all this as well.

 

[Roy Harding]

I'll be honest I don't know rules and regulations like some,but discussing a incident involved in a current military court don't seem right to me.Anyone?

It's a discussion based on a public process, reported in a public forum (the news media).  There is no OPSEC/PERSEC issue here (and let's KEEP it that way).

If you don't feel comfortable joining the discussion (I feel the same way) - don't.


Roy Harding
Milnet.ca Staff

Edited to add remarking about keeping PERSEC/OPSEC issues out of it.

 

[Jammer]

Ack,
...but it is an open forum and although we are not privy to the inner sanctum of this trial we should open this up for healthy debate.
I'm not tarring all reservists with the same brush, but lets be honest the D and S Platoon on KAF was pretty much a reservist run CoC. I have seen time and time again 18-19 and 20 yr olds who just don't have the maturity that their reg force peers have.
Not to say that regs don't have discipline probs by any stretch, but that have more consistant supervision and tighter control by more experienced leaders, not summer PLQ wunderkinds.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Well, I don't know the Jnr NCOs from the platoon in question, but I do know the PL WO.  Over 20 years in, not his first tour, he isn't one to dick around, let people dick around or encourage people to dick around.  I can't comment on the type/quality of NCOs he had under him.

 

[Arctic Acorn]

If I recall correctly, the platoon responsible for convoy escorts for the TF 1-07 task force was also all reserve (at the Platoon level down, as with the guard platoon), and they performed professionally and well during our deployment...particularly when compared to other nations operating in our area, including the US, UK, and Portugese.

Further, as far as I know, except for one (granted) highly unfortunate incident, the guard platoon in KAF for that tour also did extremely well throughout the deployment. They had a very stressful job, and despite the loss of Cpl. Megeney and the aftermath, they carried on with professionalism and pride.

Also, there were other "all reserve" elements on deployments (CIMIC and PSYOPS teams) that are all reservists, and they don't seem to have any problems, despite being out in the field constantly, in small groups, also under trying circumstances. "Summer PLQ wunderkinds" or not, we do a hell of a lot of training before deployments, and perform a dangerous job under trying circumstances right along our regular force comrades.

Again, the PRes bashing thing is old news. Individuals screw up, from either side of the fence, but that happens everywhere.

 

[Infanteer]

I have seen time and time again 18-19 and 20 yr olds who just don't have the maturity that their reg force peers have.

Are you shitting me?  How are 19 year old Regular Privates any more mature than 19 year old Reserve Privates?

This is not a reserve vs regular force issue so drop it.  This is an issue that the court is sorting out right now - I have my opinions on this, but I'll save it until the Court Martial issues its verdict as right now, this fellow is still innocent.

 

[the 48th regulator]

My two cents,

Before we go condemning the accused, and praising the dead troop, just remember this;

Unless the Wolcox intentionally Shot Megeney, the only other concept is what the Prosecution has put forward; the two were playing quick draw.  If that is the case, both would be at fault.

As for Jammer,  I will let Infanteer's words reprepresent mine, as I do not feel like swearing right now....

dileas

tess