Closing arguments were due in San Diego on Monday in the war crimes trial of a decorated U.S. Navy SEAL platoon leader charged with murdering a helpless Iraqi captive in his custody and shooting unarmed civilians. The court-martial of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher neared the conclusion of its trial phase after a bumpy two weeks of testimony for Navy prosecutors in a case that has drawn the attention of U.S. President Donald Trump. The 39-year-old career combat veteran is charged with committing the premeditated murder of a captured Islamic State fighter, brought to Gallagher’s outpost for medical treatment, by repeatedly stabbing the teenage prisoner in the neck with a custom-made knife.
