Prosecuting The My Lai Tragedy

About our Guest: Col. William G. Eckhardt, U.S. Army, Retired

Bill Eckhardt practiced law for 30 years with the Army’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps retiring as a Colonel. Over the course of his long career, he provided legal services, litigated in federal and military courts, taught at the University of California at Berkeley, taught at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and taught and held the Dwight David Eisenhower Chair of National Security at the Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania.

Since 1993 he has taught law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, where he has twice been selected Teacher of the Year by his students and has been awarded the Pierson Award for Excellence in Teaching by the University.

Professor Eckhardt received his B.A. (Honors) in 1963 from the University of Mississippi, his L.L.B. (Honors) from the University of Virginia School of Law, and his LL.M. Equivalent (Honors) in 1970 from The Judge Advocate General’s School. He also graduated from the Army’s Command and General Staff College in 1978 and the Army War College in 1982.

He was awarded The Federal Younger Lawyer Award for his work in the My Lai court-martial cases and he is the recipient of numerous military awards. He is also an author and editor of several significant publications including editing “Law for the Joint Warfighter.”