Talk radio is proving to be the saving grace for accused soldiers.

On March 17, 2008, a military court in Washington DC, released a unanimous decision upholding the dismissal of charges against Marine Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani.

Mr. Chessani had been investigated and prosecuted for his involvement in the so called “Haditha Massacre.” But coming to his defense – and the defense of the other soldiers accused by the military of misdeeds in the line of duty–has been the power of talk radio. Prominent talk radio hosts, such as Michael Savage, have taken up the cause of troops under legal fire.

In the case of Mr. Chessani, his prosecution stems from action taken by four marines under his command after they were ambushed by insurgents in Haditha, Iraq in 2005.  Their house-clearing operation resulted in the deaths of several ambushing insurgents, as well as several individuals identified as civilians. Though Mr. Chessani wasn’t present during the incident, he was criminally charged for failing to launch a full investigation.

When the situation became public, Mr. Savage took up Mr. Chessani’s cause. Local hosts around the country such as Steve Maltzberg of WOR in New York and Al Kresta of WDEO in Ann Arbor, Michigan also gave significant attention to the trial.

Mr. Savage discussed the case on his nationally syndicated radio talk show, The Savage Nation, and interviewed Mr. Chessani’s attorney, Brian J. Rooney. The Thomas More Law Center, the public interest law firm who represents Mr. Chessani, gave credit to Mr. Savage for assisting with the defense. “He’s all over this case,” Mr. Rooney said in a New York Times article. “He really is a big supporter of us and the marines.”

Mr. Savage personally donated more than $20,000 dollars to assist in Mr. Chessani’s defense. It is estimated that because of his encouragement, Savage listeners donated tens of thousands of dollars, as well. “Directly from [The Savage Nation], we can attribute $60,000,” said Mr. Rooney. He says that number does not take into account donors who did not directly attribute their donation.

Typical of radio -istener response to the issue is one individual who wrote this message with his donation to Mr. Chessani’s defense:

“I am a loyal … Savage listener donating on behalf of my brother, Tim, who is proudly serving in the U.S. Navy. He is a career serviceman coming up on 20 years of service to our country with great sacrifice to him and his family and I couldn't imagine this happening to him. Frankly, this is absurd.  I am sorely disappointed in both parties of this country. Good Luck!”

When the decision in Mr. Chessani’s case was announced, Mr. Savage proclaimed it as a victory for talk radio, as well. “He was victorious in his fight against the government, which maliciously pursued him in the Haditha case for the crime of doing his job and protecting the American people from terrorism,” Mr. Savage wrote on MichaelSavage.com. “His victory is a triumph for The Savage Nation and the entire country.”

But Mr. Chessani’s is not the only case which has benefited from talk radio attention. When Lt. Col. Allen West was accused of using improper methods to force information out of an Iraqi detainee in 2003, talk radio came to his defense. Neal Puckett, who represented Mr. West said that his client’s appearance on The Savage Nation was helpful to the case. “Allen told me that lots of donations came from appearing on that show,” said Puckett. “Talk radio is helpful in focusing the attention of the right-thinking public on these cases.”

Thanks to the air waves, the freedoms our military are fighting for are being preserved.