Families who lost sons in a deadly 2008 battle in eastern Afghanistan expressed outrage today after the Army decided not to discipline three key officers involved.

“I felt like I was shot in the face,” said David Brostrom, an Aiea resident and retired Army colonel whose son, 1st Lt. Jonathan Brostrom, was killed in the July 13, 2008 battle while trying to reinforce an observation post that was close to being overrun.

Nine soldiers were killed in the battle of Wanat and another 27 troops were wounded in one of the worst U.S. combat losses of the nine-year-old war. 

Today’s announcement reversed a decision to punish three officers for command failures as recommended by a Marine Corps investigation into the incident.

Jonathan Brostrom, 24, who grew up in Hawaii and attended Damien Memorial School and the University of Hawaii, was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for his bravery.

Families of the soldiers killed were briefed today at Fort McPherson, Ga. by Army Gen. Charles Campbell, who recently retired but informed the families of the decision to reverse the Marine Corps findings. They also were given CD copies of a 4,000-page report of the investigation.

David Brostrom fought for and obtained a second investigation after he and other families said the Army gave short shrift in an initial investigation into the attack by an overwhelming force of 200 militants on his son’s platoon.

“There wasn’t one family member of those 15 that were there that was not very upset. Nobody understood,” Brostrom said.

The families were told punishing the three officers would have a chilling effect on other battlefield commanders who have to make crucial decisions. The officers involved were company commander Capt. Matthew Myer, who following the battle received a Silver Star; battalion commander Lt. Col. William Ostlund; and brigade commander Col. Charles Preysler, David Brostrom said.

“Everything was done within reason — that’s how he (the Army’s Campbell) couched everything, reasonably correct, reasonably sufficient,” Brostrom said. 

The second investigation, ordered by U.S. Central Command and conducted by Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Richard Natonski, concluded that the brigade, battalion and company commanders should be punished for having too few troops at Wanat and for not supplying them properly, according to the family members.

The 49 Americans from Chosen Company of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team were low on water and heavy equipment to build what was planned to be a new outpost.  

U.S. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., a member of the Armed Services Committee, said today that after receiving Natonski’s investigation in January, the Army issued letters of reprimand to all three officers for being “derelict in the performance of their duties through neglect or culpable inefficiency.”

But after the Army’s Forces Command in Georgia took a closer look at Natonski’s report, service officials decided to annul the reprimands, according to Webb.

“I find it deeply troubling that the Army has exonerated these officers and in the process rejected the findings of the independent review,” Webb said in a statement. “This development raises concerns regarding the principle of command accountability in the Army.” 

Col. Tom Collins, an Army spokesman, said the service did not have an immediate comment.

“I believe we got what we wanted when the investigation showed there was wrongdoing by the Army,” said Kurt Zwilling of Missouri, whose son Gunnar was one of the soldiers killed at Wanat. “But I’m not surprised the Army didn’t punish its own.”

Carlene Cross of Seattle, who son Jason Bogar was killed at Wanat, said the families first were informed of Natonski’s findings, which she said were endorsed by Gen. David Petraeus, the Central Command chief just appointed top U.S. commander in Afghanistan.

“Then Gen. Campbell gets up and says they’re not going to do anything to them,” Cross said. “They’ve completely revoked all of the dereliction findings and basically they won’t even get a slap on the wrist. We were just furious.”