Judge removes prosecutor from Navy SEAL war crimes case

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A military judge today took the rare step of removing a prosecutor accused of misconduct from the war crimes case of a decorated Navy SEAL.

Capt. Aaron Rugh ordered Cmdr. Christopher Czaplak removed from the case of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher after defense lawyers accused the prosecution of spying on their emails, according to the ruling.

The defense asked Rugh to dismiss the case or remove prosecutors because of a surreptitious effort to track defense emails without court approval in an effort to find the source of news leaks.

Rugh said it was not in his power to determine prosecutorial misconduct, but there was the possibility of a conflict of interest that required Czaplak to be removed, the ruling said.

Rugh has not yet ruled on whether to dismiss murder and attempted murder counts against Gallagher.

A Marine Corps lawyer, Capt. Conor McMahon, assigned to the case will not be removed, Rugh said, but it's not clear if he will stay on the prosecution team. McMahon's commanders ordered him to stop participating in the case last week and he didn't appear at hearings on Thursday and Friday.

The Navy would not say if he would remain on the team.

Czaplak will be replaced with another attorney from the Navy, spokesman Brian O'Rourke said.

"Chief Petty Officer Gallagher is entitled to a fair trial and the Navy is committed to upholding that principle," O'Rourke said.

Last week, Rugh unexpectedly released Gallagher from custody as a remedy for interference by prosecutors.

The removal could delay the trial scheduled to start June 10.

Republicans in Congress have rallied in support of Gallagher, saying he has been mistreated. President Donald Trump, who intervened to move Gallagher to better confinement, has considered dismissing the charges.

Gallagher pleaded not guilty to murder in the death of an injured teenage militant in Iraq in 2017 and to attempted murder for picking off two civilians from a sniper's perch.