Adviser expected Waddle's testimony

By Mike Gordon
Advertiser Staff Writer

For weeks, Cmdr. Scott Waddle vowed he would not testify before a Navy court of inquiry unless he received testimonial immunity. The world would have to guess what was on his mind on the day his submarine collided with a Japanese fishing vessel.

Cmdr. Scott Waddle of the USS Greeneville, arriving with wife Jill at the Navy’s court of inquiry Tuesday in Pearl Harbor. AP Library photo

Waddle had always planned to testify.

"He did so because it was the right thing to do," said Charles Gittins, the civilian attorney who led Waddle's team of Navy lawyers. "He had decided a long time ago."

Waddle was the captain of the submarine USS Greeneville when it accidentally rammed the Japanese fishing vessel Ehime Maru on Feb. 9 about nine miles south of O'ahu. Nine people aboard the fishing vessel were killed when it sank in 2,000 feet of water.

Gittins guided Waddle through a 12-day court of inquiry into the collision. The court adjourned Tuesday and the three presiding U.S. admirals are now deciding how — or if ÜWaddle should be punished.

Their recommendations will be presented to Adm. Thomas Fargo, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet and the final authority in the case. Fargo's options range from exoneration to a general court-martial, which can carry prison time.

Testifying had the potential to place Waddle in the legal cross-hairs, so Gittins said he advised against taking the stand to face the wrath of a military inquiry. He said he never expected his client's request for testimonial immunity would succeed, calling it "a throwaway."

"It was not in his best legal interests to speak up," he said. "But they expected him to speak up."

Waddle never lost his composure, though, and honored a Navy tradition that demands that captains be accountable.

Waddle's legal team went over every question they could think of over a four-hour period Monday to prepare him for the witness stand, Gittins said.

When Waddle finally sat before the admirals, they blasted him with questions about his leadership style, judgment, even his desire to keep military secrets from civilians who rode as guests on the Greeneville.

It was a withering examination.

"The only people who lost their cool were the admirals," Gittins said.

Their questions often came lumped together, prompting Waddle to read them back, effectively controlling the pace at times.

Gittins said the admirals were not prepared.

"I think it was obvious from their disjointed questions," he said.

To court-martial Waddle and send him to prison would be "a gross injustice" and "not in the Navy's best interests.

"I think they have enough information to make a decision on how the accident happened and who is responsible and on all the machinations that resulted in the collision," Gittins said. "I don't see what purpose a court-martial would serve."

The best his client can hope for, he said, is being allowed to retire; Waddle has one year left before he is eligible for retirement benefits.

"I think it is a real possibility," Gittins said.

The court was also charged with investigating the role played by the Greeneville's executive officer, Lt. Cmdr. Gerald Pfeifer, and its officer of the deck Feb. 9, Lt. j.g. Michael Coen.

Gittins predicted that neither man will emerge unscathed from the inquiry.

"Nobody comes out looking good in a ship collision," he said. "The executive officer won't get a command. Probably his career is over."

Coen is the most junior of the officers involved, the Greeneville his first submarine assignment.

"I don't see any reason why his career can't continue," Gittins said. "He is a little fish in this."

But Gittins doesn't believe that Coen will ever command a submarine.

"It's just my opinion," he said. "In this Navy, one mistake and you are done."

The court is expected to deliver its report to Fargo in about three weeks.

Gittins had no predictions on how long it would take the court to finish its report.

"I don't know how diligently they are going to work or if they are even here," he said.

Waddle will go back to work Monday, relieved that the daily court sessions are over.

Fargo is expected to rule on Waddle's fate about a month after he receives the court report.

But he doesn't have to order a court-martial to end Waddle's beloved Navy career. Fargo could order "an admiral's mast," which is a nonjudicial punishment. While the penalties are small Ületters in his personnel file, a loss of pay and restriction to quarters — they pave the way for administrative discharge.

Mike Gordon can be reached by phone at 525-8012, or by e-mail at mgordon@honoluluadvertiser.com