He beat Hartzell repeatedly about the head and face using a 10-pound jackhammer drill bit, then stole Hartzell’s cell phone while he lay in an incapacitated state.
The plea was a departure from Law’s original plea of not guilty, and was entered as part of a pretrial agreement, the details of which were not made public.
During the hearing, Law sat at a table with his military-appointed counsel, appearing stolid and unemotional throughout the proceedings, but answering all questions without hesitation. The hearing room was filled with Hartzell’s family and with somber Marines from his unit.
According to Law’s own account, the killing of 22-year-old Hartzell was senseless, unprovoked and impulsive.
“I decided that I wanted to kill him,” Law said calmly, in response to questioning from the judge, Lt. Col. Bill Riggs, about his motive and intentions. “I had no reason to, sir.”
Law said he took the phone as an afterthought, after he had accomplished his original mission of violence.
“The only link (between the crimes) is that they happened in succession, one right after the other,” Law said. “I first intended to kill him.”
According to sources who previously spoke with the Daily News, Law had been on suicide watch prior to the slaying and had expressed a need for psychological help. Following the incident, he was treated for self-inflicted wounds at Pitt Memorial Hospital before his transfer to the Camp Lejeune brig.
During the hearing, Law frequently referred to eyewitness and investigative reports following the incident to prove the validity of his guilty plea, citing a cocktail of booze, marijuana and over-the-counter cough syrup that left him in a blackout and masked his memory of the specific events of the murder.
Though both Marines were assigned to Camp Lejeune’s 2nd Marine Logistics Group, Law said that he did not know Hartzell personally and had made up his mind to kill him moments before the attack, which took place outside of Barracks 525 in Camp Lejeune’s French Creek.
According to reports, Law, a supply administration clerk from Clark County, Nev., attacked Hartzell, an electro-optical ordnance repairer, while the noncommissioned officer sat talking on his cell phone outside the barracks complex. Law beat Hartzell with the heavy metal spike and kicked him repeatedly. Hartzell was found by law enforcement officials in the woods outside the complex around 1 a.m. the following day.
Law’s counsel, led by Marine Maj. Forrest Hoover, said that a defense of partial mental responsibility had been discussed, but had been abandoned for want of sufficient evidence.
Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 19. The maximum is life without parole and dishonorable discharge with forfeiture of all rank and status.
Hartzell’s father, Edward, said he hoped to see the maximum penalty imposed.
“(Law) should have given up his rights when he killed somebody. Whether it’s my son or any son, life is precious,” he said. “All the possessions in the world don’t mean anything when you lose somebody.”
He and Hartzell’s stepmother, Kay Thomas, described the Marine as a young man with maturity beyond his years.
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