A US military judge has dismissed one of the charges against a Marine lieutenant accused of helping cover up a squad's killings of 24 Iraqis, including women and children.
The judge dismissed an obstruction of justice charge against 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson. Grayson is being court-martialed at Camp Pendleton on the remaining charges of making false official statements, trying to fraudulently separate from service and attempting to deceive by making false statements.
Grayson was not present for the 2005 killings in Haditha, Iraq, that followed a roadside bombing that killed one Marine and wounded two others. Prosecutors allege that he ordered a sergeant to delete photographs of the dead from a digital camera and laptop computer.
Grayson says he did nothing wrong.
AP