The Case of Charles Horman
Background
In the wake of the 1973 coup that overthrew President SalvadorAllendeand broughtAugustoPinochetto power in Chile, CharlesHorman, a young American journalist, was abducted from his home in Santiago, tortured and executed. His widow Joyce and his father Edmund spent agonizing weeks in Chile looking for him before finally learning of his death. There is reason to believe that CharlesHorman'sknowledge of U.S. involvement in the coup was related to his execution.
In 1976, represented by the Center for Constitutional Rights, the Horman family sued Henry Kissinger and other government officials for the wrongful death of Charles and family’s pain and suffering caused by the concealment of his death. After years of vigorous attempts to obtain classified State Department and CIA documents, the case was dismissed in 1980.
Recent News
Chile judge rules US played a role and seeks extradition of ex-U.S. military officer in 1973 death
Nov 11, 2011 – A Chilean Court ruled the United States military intelligence services played a pivotal role in setting up the murders of two American citizens in 1973, providing the Chilean military with the information that led to their deaths. A Chilean judge is seeking the extradition of a former U.S. military officer to face murder charges in the 1973 slaying of freelance journalist and filmmaker Charles Horman, a case dramatized in the Oscar-winning film "Missing," court sources confirmed Tuesday.
Judge Jorge Zepeda wants former U.S. Navy Capt. Ray E. Davis, whose whereabouts were not immediately clear Tuesday, to face trial in Chile for his alleged involvement in the deaths of Horman and U.S. student Frank Teruggi. The two Americans were arrested and executed by Chilean forces shortly after President Salvador Allende was overthrown in a military coup on Sept. 11, 1973.
Horman, 31, was working as a screenwriter for state-run Chile Films when military rebel forces led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet attacked the presidential palace La Moneda. Allende committed suicide that day rather than surrender. Horman spent the day of the military uprising and several days thereafter in the resort town of Viña del Mar, near the port of Valparaiso, which was a key base for both the Chilean coup plotters and US military and intelligence personnel who were supporting them. While there, he spoke with several US operatives and took careful notes documenting the US role in overthrowing the elected government of President Salvador Allende.
Horman was arrested Sept. 17 and executed the next day, according to court documents. His body later was found on a Santiago street. Teruggi, 24, was killed Sept. 22 and his body also dumped on a street in the capital. Davis then was head of the U.S. military group attached to the American Embassy in Santiago.
- What happened to Charles Horman in 1973?
- Why was the family unsuccessful in their lawsuit against the government?
- Why is a Chilean judge seeking an extradition of a US official?
- Who does the judge think is involved in the case and how are they involved?
- What was Horman doing during the coup and what happened on September 17th?