On This Day…

Vietnam War – My Lai Massacre

March 16, 1968

U.S. troops kill between 300 and 500 unarmed civilians in My Lai, South Vietnam. Twenty-six soldiers were charged with criminal offenses, but only platoon leader Lieutenant William Calley Jr. was convicted. He was found guilty of killing 22 villagers and given a life sentence, but served only three and a half years under house arrest.