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                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 14, 1993                   TAG: 9304140143
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: WILMINGTON, N.C.                                LENGTH: Short

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3 MARINES ACQUITTED IN N.C. TRIAL

Three Marines were acquitted Tuesday of charges that they assaulted three people at a bar that catered to homosexuals.

Judge Jacqueline Morris-Goodson, who was hearing the case without a jury, said the state failed to meet its burden of proof.

The three defendants hugged their attorneys when the judge returned the verdict, and their supporters cheered in the courtroom.

Lance Cpls. Walter Watkins III, 26; Patrick Cardone, 23; and Colin Hunt, 20 were charged with three counts each of simple assault. They faced maximum penalties of 30 days in jail or $50 fines.

The most severely beaten man, Crae Pridgen, had testified that his attackers yelled "Clinton must pay" during the Jan. 29-30 ruckus, apparently referring to the president's move to lift the ban on homosexuals in the military. - Associated Press

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