United States v. Keenan

United States v. Keenan[1] was a court case in the United States where the accused, US Marine PFC Charles W. Keenan, was found guilty of murder after he shot and killed a Vietnamese man[2] under orders from a superior officer. The Court of Military Appeals held that following orders was not a justification if "the order was of such a nature that a man of ordinary sense and understanding would know it to be illegal".[2] The soldier who gave Keenan the order, US Marine Corporal Stanley Luczko, was convicted of killing another Vietnamese person during the same incident.[2] The case gained renewed attention in 2025 as part of a controversy over the issue of following unlawful orders.[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ United States v. Keenan, 39 C.M.R. 108, 110, 1969
  2. ^ a b c Solis, Gary D. (2009). "Keenan". In Cassese, Antonio (ed.). The Oxford Companion to International Criminal Justice. Oxford University Press. pp. 756–757. ISBN 9780199238316.
  3. ^ Griner, Allison (November 20, 2025). "'Punishable by DEATH': Trump threatens Democrats with sedition charges". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera. Retrieved November 24, 2025.
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