The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals recently granted a new trial for soldiers involved in a March 2006 U.S. Army training explosion at Pohakuloa Training Area.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals recently granted a new trial for soldiers involved in a March 2006 U.S. Army training explosion at Pohakuloa Training Area.
During a live-fire training exercise, a mortar cartridge prematurely exploded in the mortar gun, attorneys for the soldiers and their families said. Oscar Rodriguez died following the explosion, and Samuel Oyola-Perez, Julius Riggins and Wifredo Dayandante, who were part of the mortar crew, were all injured. Attorneys said Dayandante died several years later, before the trial began.
The 9th Circuit panel found the manufacturer of the mortar shell, General Dynamics, improperly used a nonexpert witness to “offer specialized and highly technical testimony about the cause of the explosion.”