Major Winn recommended to Major General Huck, commander of Lieutenant Pantano's division, that the murder charges be dropped. It was his assessment that Sergeant Coburn was an uncredible witness. He did, however, recommend that Pantano receive non-judicial punishment for conduct unbecoming an officer, for the sign he left on the corpses. He described Lieutenant Pantano's treatment of his captive's corpses as a "desecration". Under U.S. military law, the decision as to whether a court-martial takes place was with General Huck. He decided not to refer the case to a court-martial.
