HONOLULU -- Lawyers made opening arguments on Tuesday in the court-martial of Hawaii-born Army Lt. Ahren Watada in Fort Lewis, Wash.

A prosecutor said Watada abandoned his soldiers and brought disgrace upon himself and the Army.

Watada's attorney, Eric Seitz, told the court that Watada acted in good conscience based on his own beliefs.

The video of Watada's news conference, where he spoke out against the war in Iraq, was shown in court on Tuesday, the second day of his court-martial.

Watada tried to talk with his commanders quietly about his opposition to fighting in Iraq, but when that did not work, Seitz said that Watada respectfully went public.

"We don't believe he should be treated like a criminal we said we thought he should be treated as a person of conscience who has taken a position, which is essentially a position of civil disobedience and that any punishment or outcome from the proceedings should be from that perspective," Seitz said.

Watada is expected to take the stand in his own defense on Wednesday.

Seitz said that Watada is nervous about that, but is doing fine under the intense national publicity.

Watada is the first commissioned officer to be court-martialed for refusing to go to Iraq.

Watada's court-martial is expected to wrap up on Wednesday. If he is convicted the punishment phase would start on Thursday. Watada faces up to four years in prison.