DaytonDailyNews.com

One of eight Marines charged last week in the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha last year is a 1999 Springboro High School graduate, according to his attorney.

Marine 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson, 25, grew up in Springboro and was a Panther running back, said his attorney, Joseph Casas.

Grayson, an intelligence officer who was part of a team that photographed the aftermath of the killings, faces charges of dereliction of duty, failure to ensure a thorough investigation, making a false official statement and obstruction of justice.

"1st Lt. Grayson is a consummate Marine," Casas said in an e-mail. "He is saddened that the Marine Corps has targeted him, but he is confident that the military justice system will confirm his innocence."

Springboro's 1999 yearbook lists Grayson as a football player, teacher aide and member of the "A Team," a raucous student section that harasses opposing teams.

Four Marines have been charged with murder in the criminal case. The Marines allegedly killed the Iraqis after a roadside bomb killed a Marine and injured two others.

Grayson is one of four officers who were not there but were accused of failures in investigating and reporting the deaths.