The Apology
Calley broke his long silence after accepting a longtime friend's invitation to speak at a meeting of a Kiwanis Club of Greater Columbus. After four decades, William Calley finally apologizes for his actions during the My Lai Massacre. "There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in My Lai," Calley told members of the Kiwanis Club of Greater Columbus on 2008. His voice started to break when he added, "I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry." Calley had long refused to grant interviews about what happened, but as said before, he spoke out at the Kiwinas Club of Greater Columbus. He made only a brief statement, but agreed to take questions from the audience.
Calley didn't deny taking part in the massacre on March 6, 1968. He explained he had been ordered from his superior Capt. Ernest Medina to take out My Lai, adding that he had intelligence that the village was fortified and would be "hot" when he went in. Medina also was tried by a court martial in 1971; he was acquitted of all charges. He also said the area was submitted to an artillery barrage and helicopter fire before his troops went in. It turned out that it was not hot and there was no armed resistance. But he had been told, he said, that if he left anyone behind, his troops could be trapped and caught in a crossfire.
Calley broke his long silence after accepting a longtime friend's invitation to speak at a meeting of a Kiwanis Club of Greater Columbus. After four decades, William Calley finally apologizes for his actions during the My Lai Massacre. "There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in My Lai," Calley told members of the Kiwanis Club of Greater Columbus on 2008. His voice started to break when he added, "I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry." Calley had long refused to grant interviews about what happened, but as said before, he spoke out at the Kiwinas Club of Greater Columbus. He made only a brief statement, but agreed to take questions from the audience.
Calley didn't deny taking part in the massacre on March 6, 1968. He explained he had been ordered from his superior Capt. Ernest Medina to take out My Lai, adding that he had intelligence that the village was fortified and would be "hot" when he went in. Medina also was tried by a court martial in 1971; he was acquitted of all charges. He also said the area was submitted to an artillery barrage and helicopter fire before his troops went in. It turned out that it was not hot and there was no armed resistance. But he had been told, he said, that if he left anyone behind, his troops could be trapped and caught in a crossfire.