Jul 31, 2024 - 02:30
By edition.cnn.com

William Calley, officer convicted for his role in My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War, dead at 80

CNN —

William L. Calley Jr., the only US Army soldier to be convicted in the 1968 My Lai massacre, which saw more than 300 unarmed Vietnamese civilians killed by US soldiers in one of the most notorious war crimes in American history, has died. He was 80.

Calley’s death was first reported by The Washington Post, citing his death certificate. CNN later confirmed Calley died on April 28, through public records maintained by the Social Security Administration. He had been living in Gainesville, Florida, according to those records.

For decades, Calley’s name was synonymous with one of the worst atrocities of the Vietnam War, as the lieutenant who led Charlie Company to My Lai, though he maintained he was following orders. While multiple officers were charged in connection with the massacre, Calley was the only one convicted.

According to historians, his actions sharply divided the nation, pitting those who supported the US efforts to rout out communism against those who felt the tragedy underscored the country’s moral and ethical decline during the war.

“The photograph of the Napalm Girl … the picture of General Loan shooting the Viet Cong in Saigon. Calley just brings to mind all of those things,” said Bill Allison, history professor at Georgia Southern University and author of the book “My Lai: An American Atrocity in the Vietnam War.”

“But the fact is, the vast majority of the NCOs and young lieutenants and captains served with honor in Vietnam and did the best they could in this horrible situation,” Allison said.

“And they didn’t wantonly kill unarmed men, women and children.”