For a year I had been following the criminal case of Chief Gallagher, who was charged in 2018 with shooting civilians and stabbing an enemy captive to death in Iraq. He denied all charges, and a jury acquitted him over the summer of all but one relatively minor charge.

[The latest: President Trump ordered Pentagon not to oust Chief Gallagher from elite unit]

During my reporting, I learned over and over that most SEALs follow that silent professional ethos. They don’t like to talk to reporters, especially about anything that would discredit the SEALs. I contacted every one of the men who had served with Chief Gallagher in Iraq. None would talk. I tracked down former commanders and comrades from earlier tours in Afghanistan. None would talk. I reached out to former admirals for informed perspective. Sorry, not interested, they said.

Even the Navy commander in charge of speaking publicly for the SEALs often said next to nothing.

Once in the civilian world, some SEALs have made a good living by writing memoirs and extolling the secrets of SEAL leadership to high-paying corporate clients. But even then, they usually tell only carefully vetted tales that burnish the SEAL image.

The posts on the Instagram account Edward Gallagher shares with his wife seemed to do the opposite. Posts have insulted Navy commanders, prosecutors and Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents. They have also excoriated the men who testified against Chief Gallagher, repeatedly ridiculing one SEAL for crying when he told law enforcement agents he saw Chief Gallagher stab a teenage captive. (According to Chief Gallagher’s lawyer, the chief’s wife administers the account, which doesn’t reflect the chief’s views.)