
A decorated Navy SEAL has been acquitted Tuesday of murder in the killing of a wounded Islamic State captive under his care in Iraq in 2017.

The verdict at a military court on Naval Base San Diego was met with an outpouring of emotion as the military jury also cleared Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, 40, of attempted murder in the shootings of two civilians and all other charges except for posing for photos with the body of the dead captive.

The case exposed a generational conflict within the ranks of the elite special forces group and the outcome dealt a major blow to one of the military's most high-profile war crimes cases.

Outside the court Gallagher greeted the media alongside his wife and lawyers. He spoke briefly saying: 'I'm happy and I'm thankful.

'I thank God, my legal team and my wife.'

According to Fox News he joked with his legal team that 'it's Independence Day'.

His wife Andrea said they are now looking forward to freedom: 'We just want to celebrate today.

'I was feeling like we're finally vindicated after being terrorized by the government that my husband fought for for 20 years.

'I think that this vindication, I hope, will be a lesson learned to everybody, that we need to uphold innocent until proven guilty (and) due process.' ⁣

'If this was a movie no one would believe it.'

The couple drove away from the court in a white convertible Mustang and headed to celebrate with his supporters joking they were heading for 'tattoos and alcohol'.

Scroll down for video

Navy Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, center, walks with his wife, Andrea Gallagher, left, and advisor, Bernard Kerik as they leave a military court on Naval Base San Diego, Tuesday

Edward Gallagher shares a moment with his wife Andrea Gallagher after being acquitted on most of the serious charges against him from his court-martial trial at Naval Base San Diego in San Diego, California

Ga;;agher only spoke briefly to the media outside court. According to Fox News he joked with his legal team that 'it's Independence Day'

Outside the court Gallagher greeted the media alongside his wife and lawyers. He said: '(I feel) happy and thankful. Thank God for our legal team'

His wife said they are now looking forward to freedom. 'If this was a movie no one would believe it,' she said

Defense lawyer Marc Mukasey said Gallagher cried 'tears of joy, emotion, freedom and absolute euphoria'. Family and friends clutched each other in relief in the courtroom.

Mukasey added outside court: 'Suffice it to say this is a huge victory.

'It's a huge weight off the Gallaghers.'

The maximum sentence for posing with a corpse is four months and he spent longer than that in confinement awaiting trial before being freed by President Trump in March therefore he left the court Tuesday.

'We have a sentencing to do, but the maximum sentence of what they're about to sentence him on is much less than the time that they've already had him in the brig,' defense attorney Tim Parlatore said after Tuesday's verdict. 'So he is going home.'

Parlatore said the trial was a 'mutiny' and that he was being set up for the murder of the young ISIS fighter in 2017 by a group of younger SEALs who did not like his tough, old-school leadership style.

'The jury found him not guilty of murder, stabbing, the shootings, not guilty of all those things. They did find him guilty of taking a photo with a dead terrorist which we admitted all along, he's in that photo,' Parlatore added.

At the time they started complaining about him to their superiors, the other SEALs had been back in the US for six months and Gallagher was up for a promotion and a Silver Star.

The couple drove away from Naval Base San Diego in a white convertible Mustang to start celebrating

He left the court in the Mustang with his supporters joking they were heading for 'tattoos and alcohol'

'We have a sentencing to do, but the maximum sentence of what they're about to sentence him on is much less than the time that they've already had him in the brig,' defense attorney Tim Parlatore said after Tuesday's verdict. 'So he is going home.' The couple were all smiles above

Prosecutors told them that Gallagher's guilt was clear in photos he took with the dead militant's body but he was acquitted of other charges

Gallagher claimed he is not responsible for the boy's death and is being set up by younger, less disciplined SEALs who had it out for him because he had been tough on them on the battlefield. He celebrates his freedom outside court

Gallagheris surrounded by camera crews as he celebrates after being acquitted of premeditated murder

His wife Andrea said: 'I think that this vindication, I hope, will be a lesson learned to everybody, that we need to uphold innocent until proven guilty (and) due process' ⁣

Special Operations Chief Edward 'Eddie' Gallagher is pictured above

The turning point in the court martial was when one of the SEALs, Corey Scott, who had been expected to testify for the prosecution took responsibility for killing the boy Gallagher was alleged to have murdered.

Scott now faces perjury charges from the Naval prosecutors he blindsided. They say he made it up to protect Gallagher after being granted immunity for his own war crimes.

Earlier Tuesday Andrea shared a black and white photograph on a Facebook page where she has been keeping fans and followers updated throughout the trial, Andrea Gallagher wrote: 'Please pray for a Not Guilty verdict and the #TRUTH to finally set us Free as the jury deliberates again today so this nightmare can end.'

Prosecutors told them that Gallagher's guilt was clear in photos he took with the dead militant's body.

They also pointed to texts where Gallagher allegedly told friends: 'Got him with my hunting knife' and 'there's a good story behind this', claiming those proved his guilt.

They tried to throw out the confession of another SEAL who took credit for killing the boy, claiming he was lying because he had been given immunity and wanted to protect Gallagher, and said jurors must focus instead on what Gallagher said after the boy's death.

On Tuesday morning, Andrea Gallagher, the SEAL's wife, shared this photo of him cuddling their son on social media. She captioned it: 'Please pray for a Not Guilty verdict and the #TRUTH to finally set us Free as the jury deliberates again today so this nightmare can end'

Andrea Gallagher shared this photograph of her hugging her husband from inside the Naval Base moments after the not guilty verdict was returned. She captioned it: 'NOT GUILT OF MURDER'

Gallagher's wife also uploaded an Instagram video on Tuesday after the verdict and said 'we have our life back'

The government's evidence in this case is Chief Gallagher's words, Chief Gallagher's pictures, Chief Gallagher's SEALs Navy Comdr. Jeff Pietrzyk

They claim he went off the rails after 19 years in the armed forces and stabbed the boy unexpectedly in front of other SEALs while clearing villages in May 2017.

Gallagher claimed he is not responsible for the boy's death and is being set up by younger, less disciplined SEALs who had it out for him because he had been tough on them on the battlefield.

The defense told jurors that those SEALs were lying when they claimed to have seen him stab the boy angrily.

He was only reported to his supervisors after the other SEALs learned he was up for a promotion and a Silver Star, the third highest honor in the military.

They said there was no evidence, aside from their testimony, that Gallagher committed pre-meditated murder and that he is being set up.

The prosecution needed two-thirds of the jury, or in this case five jurors, to agree to a guilty verdict to convict.

'Navy Cmdr. Jeff Pietrzyk said in closing arguments that text messages by Gallagher show he is guilty.

One message said: 'I've got a cool story for you when I get back. I've got my knife skills on.'

An unidentified SEAL is shown unzipping a medical bag to tend to the boy in Mosul, 2017, while others stand around. Gallagher and one other, Corey Scott, treated him

In these photos that were shown to the jury, the SEALs are shown lifting the lifeless boy's body after he had died. They were taken on one of the SEAL's helmets

Two SEALs, Gallagher and Corey Scott, gave the boy medical care. They are shown above crouching around him

Edward Gallagher's lawyer Marc Mukasey emerges from court victorious on Tuesday

Mukasey, one of Trump's former lawyers, could not contain his 'euphoria' as he emerged

Another text stated: 'Good story behind this. Got him with my hunting knife.'

He then showed a photo of the dead prisoner with Gallagher holding up his head by the hair.

'The government's evidence in this case is Chief Gallagher's words, Chief Gallagher's pictures, Chief Gallagher's SEALs,' Pietrzyk said.

The prosecutor said the witness who changed his story and claimed to have killed the prisoner himself was lying to protect Gallagher.

'He [Corey Scott] changed his account to assist Chief Gallagher. He had his 'I am Spartacus' moment because he thought it would assist Chief Gallagher,' he said.

Pietrzyk acknowledged that the victim is not sympathetic but said the difference between ISIS and the US Army was that Americans did not kill once a fighter was taken out of battle.

'Before the air strike, he would have done anything in his power to kill an American,' Pietrzyk said, but he said the care of war prisoners is what sets U.S. forces apart.

'We're not ISIS. When we capture someone and they're out of the fight, that's it.

'That's where the line is drawn,' Pietrzyk said.

Gallagher was greeted by a well-wisher outside the Naval base as he arrived on Tuesday

Gallagher's lawyer Marc Mukasey wore a 'Free Eddie Gallagher' hat to the court martial

TIMELINE FEBRUARY 2017: Edward Gallagher deploys to Mosul, Iraq, with Alpha platoon SEAL Team 7 MAY 3 2017: Death of ISIS prisoner in Mosul. The 17-year-old had been captured by Iraqi forces and the SEALs were called in to give him medical care because he had a collapsed lung JUNE 18 2017: Gallagher allegedly shoots at unarmed elderly man JULY 2017: Gallagher allegedly shoots a girl SEPTEMBER 2017: SEAL Team 7 returns home MARCH 2018: Seven members of the team call a meeting with troop commander to discuss Gallagher's alleged behavior during deployment Gallagher is given the Bronze Star days later APRIL 2018: Investigation is formally launched SEPTEMBER 2018: Gallagher is charged MARCH 2019: Trump intervenes to remove Gallagher from base confinement and lets him await trial at home MAY 2019: The New York Times reports that Trump is considering pardons for Gallagher and anyone else convicted of war crimes in the trial JUNE 4 2019: Judge removes Cmdr. Christopher Czaplak, the prosecutor, after he admitted to trying to track defense emails JUNE 17 2019: Trial starts in San Diego JUNE 20 2019: Corey Scott says he killed ISIS fighter by covering his breathing tube in an act of mercy to stop him from being tortured by Iraqi forces Advertisement

During the trial, it was revealed that nearly all the platoon members readily posed for photos with the dead prisoner and watched as Gallagher read his reenlistment oath near the body in an impromptu ceremony.

Defense lawyer Tim Parlatore began his closing argument the same way he started the trial.

'This is case is not about murder, it's about mutiny,' Parlatore said.

He added there were 'gaping holes' in the testimony and said Gallagher was the target of a 'fixation' of military prosecutors.

'They started with a conclusion ... [and] ... ignored everything that didn't fit,' he said.

The attorney said there's no body, no forensics, and the SEALs who testified against Gallagher lied because they didn't like his demanding leadership. He called the pictures of Gallagher clutching the corpse's hair and his texts about his knife skills just the dark humor of a warrior.

Parlatore also contended that investigators never asked Scott about the cause of the death, which is why they were surprised by his testimony.

The defense showed video clips by an Iraq TV crew of the prisoner being interviewed after he was hit, then arriving at the SEAL compound and being handed over to the SEALs by the Iraqi troops.

It also showed Gallagher pulling out his medical bag and treating the detainee.

Gallagher's attorneys said there are a number of things that could have caused the militant's death, including internal injuries from the blast.

Over the last two weeks, seven SEALs have testified against him in the Navy Base in San Diego.

They painted him as a blood thirsty leader who acted like God on the battlefield and thought himself above the law.

But one, who had been expected to testify in favor of the prosecution, stunned the courtroom by taking responsibility for the most serious charge - the murder of the young ISIS prisoner.

It blindsided prosecutors who have now threatened the SEAL with perjury charges. He had been granted immunity for any war crimes in exchange for his testimony.

In their closing arguments on Monday, prosecutors said Gallagher's guilt was undeniable.

THE WAR CRIMES GALLAGHER WAS ACCUSED OF Murder (not guilty) On May 3, SEAL Team 7 was clearing villages near Mosul when they learned that Iraqi forces, which they were helping to fight ISIS, had encountered a young, IS fighter. He was injured and in need of medical care after suffering a collapsed lung in a strike. The boy had been brought into the SEAL compound by a Humvee of Iraqi fighters, the SEALs testified. Gallagher was not at the compound but was out on the field. When he call came over the radio that the boy needed care, Gallagher volunteered. According to witness testimony, he told the Iraqi soldiers not to waste their own medics on caring for the enemy and that he instead would tend to him. 'Lay off him, he's mine,' he is accused of saying. When they got back to the base, some of the SEALs said they saw Gallagher give him medical aid. They then claimed, however, that he took his hunting knife and spontaneously stabbed him twice in the neck and once in the side. One testified that it caused him to bleed so profusely there was blood spurting from his neck. 'It looked similar to a baby throwing up,' said Special Operations Chief Craig Miller. Others say that the last time they saw the militant, he was alive and in Gallagher's care but he was dead when they returned. The testimony which varies greatest is Corey Scott's who said he was the one who killed the boy because he wanted to spare him the torture he faced from Iraqi soldiers. Attempted murder (not guilty) There are two charges of assault on 'noncombatants' listed in the charge sheet. One is against an elderly man who the SEALs say they saw Gallagher shoot from his sniper's nest for no reason. The other is a young, schoolage girl who they say he shot. The SEALs said he claimed to have killed them but it is not clear from the charging sheet if they actually died. According to testimony, he allegedly told them over the radio: 'You guys missed them but I got them.' On another occasion, the SEALs say he shot a different girl, aged between 12 and 14, in the stomach. She was wearing a floral hijab, they said. The defense argued that none of the witnesses actually saw him pull the trigger and that was entirely possible the civilians had been shot by ISIS and not Gallagher. Posing with a corpse, reenlistment ceremony next to a corpse and flying a drone over it (guilty of posing with corpse) Photographs that were shown to the jury showed Gallagher and the other SEALs posing with the corpse of the dead Iraqi fighter once he was dead. He sent the image to friends and boasted about it, according to the SEALs. Not long after he died, Portier reenlisted Gallagher into the Navy next to the boy's corpse which had been covered by a blanket. There was also a charge for flying a drone over it in a disrespectful way once he was dead. The other SEALs participated in all of these three charges which come under the term 'Novel'. The crime is that Gallagher discredited the Navy in his actions. All of the others, with the exception of Portier, were given immunity in exchange for testifying against him. Obstructing justice x 3 (not guilty) Prosecutors allege that Gallagher obstructed justice by trying to stop other SEALs from testifying against him once the investigation was underway and before it began. They say that he threatened them and told them he would kill them if they ever told superiors how he had behaved during the deployment. Unlawfully firing his gun (not guilty) Gallagher allegedly fired his rifle indiscriminately, at least '10 times' than some of the other SEALs said they did, while deployed. Unlawful possession of a controlled substance (dropped before trial) He is accused of having Sustaon 250, a testosterone injection. Prosecutors claimed he was using the steroid improperly. He argued that it was part of a medical kit he had been given to give to others that was discovered during a search of his house. Wrongful use of a controlled substance (dropped before trial) Gallagher also had tramadol, a highly addictive painkiller, which they say he was abusing. He argued that he had long held a prescription for it. Advertisement

THE PROSECUTION - War crimes including murder, attempted murder, obstruction of justice, conduct unbecoming of an officer - Gallagher was an unhinged 19-year veteran on his 8th tour who thought he was above the law - SEALs testified that he shot indiscriminately at Iraqi civilians including an old man collecting water and a girl - They say he boasted about killing 'hundreds' during his tours and was blood thirsty - When he was indicted, some of the SEALs said they spent more time protecting Iraqi civilians from Gallagher than they did fighting ISIS - They claim Gallagher plunged his knife into ISIS fighter's neck twice and his side once in a sudden attack - Afterwards, he justified it by calling him 'just another ISIS dirtbag' - The SEALs say they had to speak up against him for others' safety Advertisement

THE DEFENSE - Gallagher is an honorable, life-saving SEAL who has spent nearly 20 years in the military protecting people all over the world - He is a medic and a sniper whose mission is to protect and serve, no matter the mission - In 2017, he was leading a group of less disciplined SEALs during his 8th deployment and they were in Mosul, Iraq - Some were angry that he had been recommended for the Silver Star, the third highest honor in the Navy - He was tough on them, calling them cowards in the battlefield and accusing them of not pulling their weight, and they did not like it - On the day the ISIS prisoner died, Gallagher had given the young boy medical treatment - He made an incision in his throat to give him a breathing tube - However the boy lost his life after that was out of his control Advertisement

The Alpha platoon SEAL Team 7 which was splintered by the trial

Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Dalton Tolbert

SO1 Dalton Tolbert

When the SEALs returned from Mosul and set up their WhatsApp group, SO1 Dalton Tolbert, who was a sniper during their tour, tried to drum up support from others to report Gallagher.

'I saw Eddie Gallagher shoot at someone who didn't deserve to die. I shot more warning shots to protect civilians [from Eddie] than I ever shot at ISIS,' he said in one message in their WhatsApp group, The Sewing Circle.

He gave one example where he said he saw Gallagher shoot an unarmed elderly Iraqi man in a tunic who had been collecting water from a river.

He claimed he fired a warning shot to try to scare the man away but that Gallagher fired at him and wounded him.

Tolbert had been accepted into the famous SEAL Team 6, which was responsible for taking out Osama Bin Laden.

He said that as a result of his testimony at Gallagher's trial, his dream of carrying out covert operations for that team is now over.

Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Dylan Dille

SO1 Dylan Dille is illustrated above in a shirt and tie, sitting in front of Gallagher, with a photograph in the background of the men crowded around the ISIS fighter once dead

Dille's testimony was some of the most damaging. He claimed that Gallagher told him that he would like to kill an ISIS prisoner if the opportunity arose.

His remarks were what informed the prosecution's arguments that it was a premeditated killing.

Dille claimed that on the day the boy died, he was with Gallagher when the call came over the radio that a prisoner was at the base.

'No one touch him. He's all mine,' he claimed he said.

He said Gallagher had told him earlier: 'If we ever get a wounded enemy, that the medics know what to do to nurse him to death.'

He did not claim to have seen Gallagher kill him. Instead, he said the boy was alive when he left him

He returned to his post and then came back to the group later but found the prisoner dead, he said.

Later that day, he said Gallagher held a meeting with the junior SEALs because they were so uncomfortable with what had happened.

He said that at that meeting, Gallagher told them: 'This was just an ISIS dirtbag. Next time we get a prisoner … it will be out of sight, out of mind.'

Dille served in the Navy from 2010 until last year.

Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Craig Miller

Miller's testimony was among the most dramatic. He said that he saw Gallagher plunge the knife into the boy's neck and that blood spurted out.

'I saw him stab the prisoner in the side of the neck. He kind of like jumped back a little bit,' after the alleged stabbing.

SO1 Craig Miller

'The blood just came out. It looked similar to a baby throwing up,' he said.

Miller was who led The Sewing Circle, according to Parlatore, Gallagher's lawyer.

He was the first to report him to superiors once they had returned from Iraq. It was around the time that Gallagher was up for promotion to Master Chief and he was being considered for the Silver Star, the third highest honor in the armed forces.

Miller first went to Lt. Commander Robert Breisch in around March 2018, when Gallagher was up for the award. He told Breisch that it was based on lies and that he didn't deserve it. When asked why, he first claimed Gallagher stole food from care packages in the platoon.

When he was told that wasn't enough to open an investigation, he claimed Gallagher used dangerous war tactics like using other SEALs as bait.

Again, he was told it was not enough. Over the next five months, Breisch said one of the SEALs went to him every week to complain about Gallagher.

Eventually, in around August 2018, Miller finally claimed he'd stabbed an ISIS prisoner.

'[He] blurted and vomited it out. He said, 'Eddie stabbed a prisoner,'' Breisch testified.

Since they returned, Miller has been promoted to chief.

Special Operator First Class Corey Scott

Scott had been expected to testify in line with the other SEALs and accuse Gallagher of murdering the boy.

But when he got on the witness stand, he blindsided prosecutors and the courtroom by claiming he was the one who killed the ISIS prisoner by closing off his air supply by covering his breathing tube with his thumb.

He said it was an act of mercy because he knew Iraqi forces would torture the young man if he let him live and handed him over.

Corey Scott (in a court sketch) was called as a prosecution witness on Thursday in the case against Gallagher but stunned the prosecutors by taking responsibility for the murder. Now, he is being threatened with perjury charges

Scott and Gallagher were the two medics on the scene and they were closest to the boy when he died.

He said he did see Gallagher stab him but that it was not what ultimately killed him.

Prosecutors have accused him of lying to protect Gallagher and say he only did it because he had been granted immunity himself.

He insisted he was being honest and merely did not want Gallagher, who has a wife and children, to spend the rest of his life in prison.

Scott has since been threatened by Navy prosecutors with perjury charges.

Special Warfare Operator First Class Joshua Vriens

SO1 Joshua Vriens

Vriens testified that he had seen Gallagher shoot a young girl in a hijab and sent others scattering.

He claimed to have watched through his scope as the girl was hit in the stomach and then dragged by one of her friends to safety.

But upon cross-examination, Vriens admitted he only saw it through his own sniper scope and did not see Gallagher pull the trigger.

He also conceded that ISIS had been shooting civilians that day, leaving open the possibility that it could have been one of their snipers who injured the girl.

Special Warfare Operator First Class T.C. Byrne

Byrne testified that he was wearing a helmet fitted with a camera when the ISIS prisoner was brought into the base.

Footage taken from it was shown to the jury. He said that he saw the prisoner alive but that he left him in Gallagher's care and returned to find him dead.

SO1 Terrance 'TC' Byrne is shown pointing to a photo of the dead fighter on the ground

Lt. Thomas MacNeil

MacNeil, who had roomed with Gallagher in the past, was the first to take the stand.

He claimed that after they returned from Mosul and there were rumors of an investigation, Gallagher and Portier approached him in a parking lot where he said Gallagher ran up to him and threatened him.

'Chief Gallagher got in my face and said 'If you take me down, I'll take all of you down. I've got s**t on all of you,' he told the trial.

Lt. Jacob Portier

Portier was the supervisor during the deployment and he has been charged separately for covering up Gallagher's alleged crimes.

He conducted the reenlistment ceremony next to the dead ISIS fighter's body once he had stopped breathing and was also filmed walking past the SEALs as they played with a drone near the youngster's body.

He allegedly ordered the SEALs to delete the incriminating photographs and videos taking during deployment which could put Gallagher behind bars.

Portier's own defense team has claimed, like Gallagher's, that they are being unfairly prosecuted.

At his trial, it was revealed that a repository where alleged war crimes are meant to be logged and then investigated has sat empty since it was created in 2009.

SEALs referred to Gallagher as 'el diablo' and plotted how to bring him down before war crimes trial in secretive WhatsApp group they called 'The Sewing Circle

The Navy SEALs who testified against Gallagher discussed reporting him to their superiors in a secret WhatsApp group called The Sewing Circle for months before he was indicted.

Seven members of the Alpha platoon Seal Team 7 testified against Gallagher at his two-week long trial in San Diego.

They had already spoken at length about why they thought he should no longer be allowed to serve in the military on the group, created after they returned from Mosul in 2017.

One SEAL claimed in their group text that he spent more time protecting civilians 'from Eddie' than he did fighting ISIS

The SEALs were deployed between February and September 2017.

When they returned home, Gallagher was celebrated for his bravery and the Navy was poised to award him the Silver Star, the third highest honor in the military.

News of the award prompted them to speak out.

The SEALs say it was because they could not allow him, in good conscience, to be celebrated when he had behaved in the ways they described.

Gallagher's attorney has suggested they were jealous that he was being recognized and they were not.

Among the messages was one where Corey Scott, the medic who took responsibility for the death of an ISIS prisoner Gallagher was charged with murdering, said he was 'ready to fight and kill.'

Others claimed in the messages to have spent more time trying to save Iraqi civilians from Gallagher than they did fighting ISIS.

How Trump weighed in on trial to get Gallagher better terms and may pardon him if he is convicted and the Navy SEAL's army of Republican support

The case not only made waves in the armed forces, it also caught the attention of prominent politicians and even the president.

Before he went on trial, Trump who intervened to free Gallagher from the brig, the Navy equivalent of prison, and give him better bail terms while he awaited his day in court.

'In honor of his past service to our Country, Navy Seal #EddieGallagher will soon be moved to less restrictive confinement while he awaits his day in court,' the president

'Process should move quickly!' Trump tweeted.

Two months later, it was reported that he would consider pardoning Gallagher should he be convicted.

His interference was the culmination of requests from Republicans to let Gallagher spend precious time with his family, at home, before potentially being jailed for life.

In March, Trump, responding to requests from Republican lawmakers and Gallagher's wife, moved him out of the brig and into less restrictive confinements

Gallagher's team of lawyers includes Marc Mukasey (left), who worked for Trump, and Navy veteran Tim Parlatore (right)

Rudy Giuliani has also weighed in on the case on Twitter, alleging misconduct against prosecutors

'We ask that you weigh this decision given the terrible message Chief Gallagher's confinement sends to our warfighters, that they can be confined behind bars away from their family, legal defense, and community for nine months before their day in court,' the lawmakers asked Navy Region Southwest commander Rear Adm. Yancy B. Lindsey.

Also on his team was Bernard Kerik, the former NYPD commissioner

One was Dan Crenshaw, the Republican representative for Texas who lost an eye fighting in Afghanistan and was a SEAL himself before taking up politics.

The other was Duncan Hunter, a Marine veteran from California.

In their request, they added: 'To confine any service member for that duration of time, regardless of the authority to do so, sends a chilling message to those who fight for our freedoms.'

Their support of Gallagher and concerns about the case are echoed on forums, petitions and support groups where his fans called the trial a 'mutiny'.

While Gallagher is yet to comment on the president's support, his strong ties to the administration and to GOP elite are clear.

One of his lawyers is Marc Mukasey, a former partner of Rudy Giuliani who has also worked for Trump in a personal capacity.

Another is Bernard Kerik, a long-time Trump associate and the former NYPD commissioner who was convicted of ethics violations, tax fraud and false statements.

The case has been eagerly watched by former New York mayor and Trump comrade Rudy Giuliani who has commentated on it on Twitter throughout and maintains there is something 'seriously wrong' with prosecutors' efforts to put Gallagher behind bars.

Tim Parlatore, the lead defense attorney, is a Navy veteran who served between 2002 and 2013.

Gallagher's wife appealed directly to Trump to free him from the brig. When he was put in barracks, she shared her thanks in a Facebook post.

Gallagher has also received support from strangers and the Navy SEALs Fund which has raised more than $730,000 to pay for his defense.

The proceeds of t-shirt sales by three different apparel companies are also contributing to his defense.

Kerik tweeted his support throughout the trial. On Monday, when the jury started deliberating, he tweeted this

Andrea Gallagher, Eddie' relentless wife and chief supporter who stood by his side through 'farce' trial and lambasted the 'mean girls' who testified against him

Gallagher said nothing throughout the nearly year-long process between being indicted and the end of his trial, but his wife Andrea was a constant presence in the media and by his side.

Since he was charged in September 2018, Andrea, 39, has relentlessly campaigned for her husband's exoneration.

She made multiple television appearances, first on Fox News and later, as the trial gathered speed, on Good Morning America to insist on his innocence and condemn prosecutors' attempts to put him behind bars.

Andrea Gallagher with her husband Edward in one of the countless photographs she has shared of their family in her continued effort to ensure his freedom

In addition to her media campaign, the glamorous blonde launched social media pages where she shared photographs of their family.

In them, Gallagher is seen hugging their sons and kissing her. The Facebook page has more than 33,000 followers.

Andrea's searing confidence throughout was well documented in interviews.

Despite SEALs testifying to have witnessed her husband killing the ISIS prisoner, she said in one interview: 'He's confident. My husband has always maintained his innocence from the beginning; he has been confident.

'He's wanted to go to trial. We have waited so long for this opportunity,' she said.



On it, Andrea has shared photos of herself and Eddie on 'date night' during the trial.

Andrea has shared photographs of Gallagher with their sons on social media as part of her sustained campaign

On the page, Andrea refers to the men who testified against her husband as 'mean girls'

'I will NEVER give up or stop speaking out against the injustices my husband, children, and family have suffered during this horrific ordeal & utter TRAVESTY of JUSTICE,' she captioned the video.

She earlier called it 'corrupt', 'vile' and a 'farce' and has referred to the younger SEALs testifying against him as 'Mean Girls.'

She pleaded with the president to intervene when her husband was put in the brig, begging him: 'What is happening here isn't right, and we need your help.'

When he was released, she thanked him publicly.

The pair had been married for 12 years and Andrea says they are lifelong best friends.

The couple have three children together; a 19-year-old son, a teenage daughter and a 10-year-old son. They live in Florida.

She has previously told how he planned to retire next year, aged 40, after 20 years in the armed forces.

Gallagher has shared photos of herself with her husband throughout online. She also told fans about their 'date nights' while the trial was ongoing