Tri-Service
Thousands Lobby Government For Release Of 'Marine A'
Thousands have gathered in Westminster's Parliament Square Westminster to show support for a Royal Marine found guilty of murdering an injured Afghan fighter.
Two and a half years ago Sergeant Alexander Blackman, known during his trial as 'Marine A', lost an appeal against his conviction, although his sentence was commuted to eight years.
A similar protest a year ago coincided with a Royal Navy report which said Blackman had let professional standards "slip to an unacceptably low level."
The former marine was towards the end of a so-called 'tour from hell' in Afghanistan when he shot a Taliban insurgent in 2011.
Two years later, he was convicted of murder.
His family lost an appeal to see the conviction overturned, but saw his 10-year sentence reduced to eight. A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said:
"Sergeant Blackman’s case involved a full criminal inquiry, a court martial, an appeal, and is currently under review by the independent Criminal Cases Review Commission. We respect the decision of the court and we will continue to co-operate with any legal process."
In December last year a report with new evidence was submitted to the criminal cases review commission.
His legal team are still waiting to hear if they can proceed with a new appeal.
The prospect of a new appeal gives some hope to Sergeant Blackman's wife Claire - she is calling for it to go ahead as soon as possible.
Sergeant Blackman was initially convicted after footage taken from a colleague's helmet documented the incident.
Following the killing, Blackman was heard saying he has broken the Geneva convention. An independent court martial found him guilty of murder.
It is illegal to kill the enemy if he is wounded or disarmed. The Ministry of Defence said they respect the decision of the court and will continue to co-operate with any legal process.
But despite the conviction many, including his local MP believe that combat stress led to the killing and the conviction should be overturned.
Sergeant Blackman's legal team are confident that an appeal will be granted. Jonathan Goldberg QC said:
"I am going to stick my neck out today and say that if this case is not sent back for a full new appeal hearing I will eat my wig. Or at least my two juniors will. So, fingers crossed Marines."
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