First enlistment Pantano served in the U. S. Marine Corps during the
Persian Gulf War as a
TOW gunner. Pantano completed
Scout Sniper training, and was promoted to
Sergeant, remaining in the Marine Corps until 1993.
Rejoins the USMC Immediately following the
September 11 attacks, Pantano decided to rejoin the
Marines. Pantano's apartment was next to a fire station where eleven firemen, four of whom were former Marines, perished in the attacks. He was accepted to
Officer Candidate School and was commissioned as a
Second Lieutenant upon completion. He was a popular officer and his superiors described him as the best
platoon commander in his
battalion. His men reported that they appreciated the extra training drills he put them through. Pantano went to
Iraq in February 2004 with
2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines. This was quickly followed by the intense fighting in
Fallujah during
Operation Vigilant Resolve in April 2004.
Incident, hearing and aftermath On April 15, 2004, acting on
intelligence extracted from captured insurgents, Lieutenant Pantano led his platoon against a compound near the town of
Mahmudiyah. As the platoon approached the compound, they saw a vehicle with two Iraqis in it. Pantano ordered his men to stop the vehicle and to have the occupants of the vehicle handcuffed. The vehicle was searched for weapons. Pantano remained with the captives, while the rest of his platoon secured the compound. The compound was deserted, but his men found a cache of arms, including
"several mortar aiming stakes, a flare gun, three AK47 rifles, 10 AK magazines with assault vests and IED making material". On April 14, 2005, Pantano tried to waive his right to an
Article 32 pretrial hearing, in an effort to speed the process toward a
court martial. Pantano claimed that the government was withholding key evidence and witnesses and according to a statement made by his mother, waived his right to a hearing "in order to get a Military Judge to compel the prosecution to produce witnesses and evidence in his case." The request was denied and the Article 32 hearing was held on April 26, 2005 with Major Mark Winn as the presiding officer. Prior to Pantano's Article 32 hearing the
Department of Defense had maintained that it was impossible to do a post-mortem examination on the corpses of Lieutenant Pantano's captives because they were buried in a cemetery that was in an area that was not under American control. However, shortly before the hearing and a year after the incident itself, the bodies were exhumed. The autopsy report was released the day after the Article 32 recommendation was made and, according to
The Washington Times, confirmed Lt. Pantano's testimony that he had shot the men as they approached him.
Pantano's statements Pantano acknowledged leaving a sign on a car above the corpses that said, "No better friend, No worse enemy," but then returned to remove it after one of his colleagues called it 'inappropriate'.
Witnesses Navy Corpsman George Gobles was present but did not witness the danger Pantano reported, because he was looking outwards, as ordered. He later stated when he turned back he saw the Iraqis trying to run away. Sergeant Coburn is reported to have said "As soon as I turned my back, Lt. Pantano opened [fire] with approximately 45 rounds." Pantano's defense counsels have said they believe that Sergeant
Daniel Coburn's account should not be given any credit, because he was disgruntled, having been demoted recently by Pantano. A report by the officer investigating the claims found "a great deal of discrepancies and conflicting testimony given by Sgt. Coburn", and noted that he might have been prompted to make his allegations by his numerous poor performance reports. In his testimony at Pantano's hearing, Corporal "O" described interviewing the two captives. Under U.S.
military law, the decision as to whether a
court-martial should take place lay solely with General Huck, who dropped all charges.
Support Pantano received support from internet websites and organizations which specialize in supporting the troops. He received backing from certain talk radio personalities, specifically
Michael Savage who spent day after day raising awareness of Pantano's situation and even conducted several interviews with Pantano and his family. North Carolina's Third District
U.S. Representative Walter B. Jones introduced House Resolution 167 which expressed the support of the House of Representatives for Pantano. On February 25, Congressman Jones wrote a letter to President Bush asking for his support for Pantano. On April 14, 2005, the Association for Los Angeles County Deputy Sheriffs sent a letter to then President Bush endorsing House Resolution 167 in support of Pantano. • House Resolution 167 in support of 2LT Ilario Pantano, March 17, 2005. # LA Deputy Sheriffs' endorsement of HR 167, April 14, 2005. [https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/LASheriffsEndorsement.pdf • Congressman Walter Jones' public statement of support, May 5, 2005. [https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Jones_congress_record.pdf ] • Congressman Walter Jones' endorsement of Pantano's memoir, June 6, 2006. ==Autobiography==