fe352v8: when you get on down to the individual platoon, company or unit (whatever designation) level, the unit commander is responsible. It is he or she who gives the direct orders or it is he or she who is negligent in his/her command of the actions of his/her troops.
You can take it all the way up the chain of command if you want to but the truth is that it is the individual unit commander who has the day to day command responsibilities, not the battalion, brigade or division commander.
When you are commissioned, you are given the 'command responsibility' to effectively and properly carry out your orders. If you lose sight of that responsiblity or lose command and control over your troops and they violate the UCMJ or other military provisions, you are the one responsible for 'command failures' and they are responsible for their individual actions.
1Lt. William Calley was directly resposnible for ordering his men to fire on unarmed civilians who had been ordered into a ditch (mass grave, actually). Calley should have had the villagers turned over to the ARVN, who would have shot them anyhow. Capt. Medina had given Calley the order to take the village, but left Calley's actions to his own command decision and failed to properly supervise his platoon leader.
I was a bit more than just a observor at that trial. The prosecution placed full command responsibility on both Medina and Calley and held Calley directly responsible for the actions of his men. I do not recall what happended to Medina but Calley received a dishonorable discharge and then went home to a welcoming party and a cush job in his family's jewelry business. Go figger. Mikey.
