To find Hassoun guilty of desertion, a Marine court must find that he left his post with the intent to remain away permanently, that he intended to avoid hazardous duty and that he intended to shirk from an important duty, Morgan said. If one of the three criteria is not met, Hassoun may face a lesser charge.

Balmanno said prosecutors rarely have hard evidence to prove intent.

"You usually infer intent from conversations or other circumstantial evidence," he said.

That may be where members of the undercover intelligence gathering team come in as prosecution witnesses.

"If the government intends to call those people, then certainly if (Hassoun) was involved in that, he might have shared some information with them," Balmanno said. "He might have said, 'This is really dangerous. This is crazy to have us do that.' He might have revealed some intent to them."

Senior Camp LeJeune prosecution counsel Maj. Stephen Keane said in court that he was ready to call several witnesses, at least one of whom was flown in from an undisclosed location.

However, Wunder said Hassoun's defense team had objected earlier to calling witnesses — an apparent indication that such an action would be premature before Hassoun has his defense team established.

Morgan estimated there may be as many as nine witnesses called to testify, either in person or by telephone.

Hassoun and his attorneys, under military law, have a right to cross-examine prosecution witnesses during an Article 32 hearing for the purpose of discovery, which may aid Hassoun at trial.

Wunder also warned Hassoun that his civilian attorney must have prior clearance to view classified information and gave the Marine corporal until Jan. 13 to be ready for the hearing.

Tuesday's hearing also was important for getting Hassoun's rights on the record as soon as possible, Wunder said.

During the hearing, Keane expressed concern over exposing the identity of witnesses. The media were instructed to avoid using last names and describing the physical features of soldiers expected to testify next month.

Balmanno said that is typical of military court proceedings in which undercover operatives are called to testify. It's possible that some portion of next month's hearing could be closed.

Marine officials also noted that the consequences for Hassoun are more serious than initially reported. Morgan said if convicted of desertion, Hassoun could face a maximum of five years to life in prison without parole. He also faces 10 years for each theft and larceny count.