A young Long Island marine who spent 18 months as a prisoner of war was acquitted today of charges that he had run from his unit and, when captured, had made propaganda statements broadcast over the Hanoi radio.
The decision freed Sgt. Jon M. Sweeney, 21 years old, of West Babylon, L. I., who testified earlier in the day that his company had left him in the South Vietnamese jungle to die and that the propaganda statements had been obtained under duress.
The verdict, which came after the prosecution abruptly rested its case and each side made brief arguments, was announced by Capt. B. Raymond Perkins of the Navy, the military judge who had heard the case without a court‐martial panel.
Captain Perkins indicated, in announcing his verdict, that he felt the prosecution had not contradicted either of the two main defenses: duress and physical infirmity.
