No decision DESPITE VARIOUS media reports that USS Greeneville skipper Cmdr. Scott Waddle will probably not face a court-martial for the Feb. 9 collision between his submarine and the Japanese fishing training ship Ehime Maru, the Navy said no decision has been made by Adm. Thomas Fargo, Pacific Fleet commander.
yet on fate of
sub’s skipper
News reports say Cmdr. Waddle
is unlikely to be court martialedMemorial would honor
missing Ehime crewBy Gregg K. Kakesako
Star-BulletinFargo met for three hours yesterday with three senior U.S. admirals and one Japanese admiral who conducted the investigation into the collision that resulted in the death of nine Japanese men and teenage boys.
After hearing 33 witnesses during the three-week Pearl Harbor inquiry, the court, led by Vice Adm. John Nathman, submitted a 2,000-page report to Fargo. He has 30 days to decide whether to court-martial Waddle or any of his crewmen.
The Navy will not release Nathman's recommendations, but ABCNews said it is unlikely Waddle will face a court-martial. The report said the panel found there was no criminal intent on the part of Waddle and his crew in the accident. Courts-martial are reserved for felony criminal cases, and there was no evidence of any criminal intent, ABCNews said.
Charles Gittins, Waddle's attorney, told the Star-Bulletin he would have no comment since has not seen Nathman's report, nor has he been briefed on its contents.
ABCNews said the Navy will most likely punish Waddle through an administrative procedure called an admiral's mast and could be allowed to retire honorably.
Waddle has already told Fargo's attorneys before Nathman filed his report that he would accept such a punishment. He has said his career is over.
CNN said the three investigating admirals were deeply divided in their opinions and that they might issue both a majority opinion and a minority opinion. CBS also said the court was divided on how to punish Waddle.
All the media reports cited unnamed sources.
Kyodo News Service in Japan reported that the nine victims' families and others in Ehime prefecture were upset over the U.S. media reports.
"I'll be very angry if I learn officially that the court-martial will not take place," said Kazuo Nakata, 55, whose son Jun, 33, was one of two Ehime Maru fishing instructors killed in the accident.
"I expect the U.S. Navy to court-martial Mr. Waddle. He should take criminal responsibility," said Toshio Kamado, 50, whose son Atsushi, 17, survived the sinking.
But the acting secretary of the Navy has said he hopes Waddle does not receive a court-martial because it might seriously damage morale in the Navy.
The inquiry was led by Nathman, a naval aviator; Rear Adm. David M. Stone, a former destroyer commander; and Rear Adm. Paul F. Sullivan, a submariner.
A Japanese rear admiral, Isamu Ozawa, was allowed to sit through the investigation and deliberations but not to vote.
Initially, Fargo was supposed to meet Nathman and the other admirals in San Diego tomorrow to receive the report and a briefing.
However, when China released the 24 crew members of the EP-3 surveillance plane earlier this week, Fargo canceled his travel plans to oversee the two-day debriefing process.
No matter what the panel's recommendation, the final decision on Waddle and the fate of other crewmen lie with Fargo. He is expected to decide within a week and has promised to call a press conference to discuss his decision.
So far, the only parties named in the investigation have been Waddle; his executive officer, Lt. Cmdr. Gerald Pfeifer; and Lt. j.g. Michael Coen, Greeneville's officer of the deck on Feb. 9.
They could face courts-martial, administrative discipline or no action.
During the court of inquiry, a Navy investigator testified that a technician stopped manually plotting sonar contacts and did not notify Waddle about a nearby contact because he was either lazy or distracted by 16 civilians who were jammed into the crowded control room. Another investigator said a longer sonar search would have detected the Ehime Maru.
Waddle, whose ship was running behind schedule at the time of the crash, is alleged to have conducted a periscope sweep faster than required. His search was 80 seconds long, while procedures usually call for a three-minute sweep. Others said Waddle seemed to rush through the surfacing drill.
The Greeneville was demonstrating an emergency surfacing procedure for 16 civilian guests when it rammed into the hull of the fishing vessel. The Ehime Maru sank within 10 minutes.
The relatives of the nine missing Japanese want the Navy to raise the ship high enough from its 2,003-foot resting place so divers can retrieve personal belongings and possibly bodies.
The Navy has raised the possibility of doing such an operation this summer when the seas are calmest if there are no problems associated with salvaging a ship laden with diesel fuel. The Ehime Maru is located nine miles south of Diamond Head.
The families of the nine victims of the Ehime Maru sinking want a monument built in Hawaii in memory of their loved ones, Ehime Gov. Moriyuki Kato told Foreign Minister Yohei Kono yesterday. Memorial would honor
missing Ehime crewThe families want the monument
built from the ship's anchorsFrom staff and wire reports
In a 15-minute meeting at the Foreign Ministry, Kato asked for the ministry's cooperation in realizing the families' wish to have a monument erected at a location such as Diamond Head, a ministry official said.
The Japanese fishing ship sank on Feb. 9 about nine miles off Diamond Head after it was struck by the nuclear attack submarine USS Greeneville.
The governor explained that the cost of building the monument will come from fund raising, as well as contributions from the Ehime prefectural government, and that the ministry's help is being sought in negotiating with the United States the right to build the memorial on U.S. territory.
A spokeswoman for Gov. Ben Cayetano said the governor would have to speak to his advisers before commenting on such a proposal.
Rep. Mindy Jaffe (R, Diamond Head-Waikiki) said the memorial is a good idea. "I think it's absolutely appropriate, though we'll have to look closely at what they have in mind."
The families want the monument to be constructed from the anchors of the Ehime Maru, the high school fisheries training vessel that now lies 2,003 feet under the ocean, the ministry official said.
Kono indicated his willingness to assist the accident victims and their families, according to the official.
The Ehime Maru sank after being hit by the Greeneville, which was carrying out a rapid-surfacing operation for civilian guests aboard. Nine Japanese, including four teenage students, were lost at sea, while 26 were rescued.
Kyodo News Service and Star-Bulletin reporter
Rod Antone contributed to this report.
