USA: U.S. soldier reacts to the murder charges against him being dropped by an Italian court

US soldier charged in the murder of Italian intelligence agent Nicola Calipari said it was a weight off his shoulders that the charges had been dropped by an Italian court. The U.S. soldier who was being tried for murder for killing an Italian intelligence agent had the charges against him dropped by an Italian court on Thursday (October 25) for lack of jurisdiction. U.S. soldier Mario Lozano, 38, was being tried in absentia for shooting Italian agent Nicola Calipari at a checkpoint outside Baghdad airport in 2005. Calipari had been escorting a newly freed Italian hostage out of Iraq. "I feel like there's a weight off my shoulders," Lozano told Reuters. "I could sleep easier now even though I have to still live with the fact I was involved in (taking) an innocent man's life." The Pentagon also welcomed the decision, saying it believed the case should never have gone to court in the first place. But the ruling drew howls of protest from Italy's political left on Wednesday, with lawmakers accusing the Rome court of dishonouring the memory of a national hero. Lozano, who was a gunner at a checkpoint on the road to Baghdad airport, says he opened fire on a car carrying Calipari and freed journalist Giuliana Sgrena after the driver ignored warning shots and refused to stop. Washington refused to hand Lozano over for trial. Lozano blamed the Italian journalist whose release Calipari had just secured before he was shot for creating such a dangerous situation. "If it wasn't for Sgrena, the situation would not have happened," Lozano said. "She went out there, she wanted to mingle with the terrorists and all that. ... She knows that if she is going to talk to terrorists, she knows there is a 99 percent chance she will get caught. ... It's her fault that this is happening -- not my fault." Italian prosecutors had also sought to convict Lozano for the attempted murder of the journalist, who was wounded in the shooting. She told reporters at the court house that the decision not to try Lozano was "absolutely incomprehensible." The agent's widow, Rosa Calipari, who was elected to the Senate following his death, declined comment but her lawyer called the ruling "surprising." The court will not make public the reasoning behind the decision for up to two months, but Biffani said his arguments included that "Mr Lozano was part of the United States armed forces" and as such had "immunity." Although Lozano is relieved by the Italian judge's decision, he says he feels someone might be out to get revenge. "Mentally, I've endured so much stress, you know. looking in my rear view mirror to see if anybody's following me," said Lozano. "You never know who's out there, you know, you got a lot of psycho's out there," he added.

ITN Source | October 26, 2007

Tags:. .attempted. .though. .situation. .hero. .terrorists