COLUMBUS, Ga. — Speaking in a soft, sometimes labored voice, the only U.S. Army officer convicted in the 1968 slayings of Vietnamese civilians at My Lai made an extraordinary public apology while speaking to a small group near the military base where he was court-martialed.

"There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in My Lai," William L. Calley told members of a local Kiwanis Club, the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reported yesterday. "I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry."

Calley, 66, was a young Army lieutenant when a court-martial at nearby Fort Benning convicted him of murder in 1971 for killing 22 civilians during the infamous massacre of 500 men, women and children in Vietnam.

Frustrated U.S. troops came to My Lai on a "search and destroy" mission, looking for elusive Vietcong guerrillas. Although there were no reports of enemy fire, the U.S. troops began mowing down villagers and setting fire to their homes.

The incident shocked Americans and undermined support for the war.

Though sentenced to life in prison, Calley ended up serving three years under house arrest after President Richard Nixon reduced his sentence.

After his release, Calley stayed in Columbus and settled into a job at a jewelry store owned by his father-in-law before he moved to Atlanta a few years ago. He shied away from publicity and routinely turned down journalists' requests for interviews about My Lai.

But Calley broke his long silence Wednesday after accepting a longtime friend's invitation to speak at a meeting of the Kiwanis Club of Greater Columbus.

Wearing thick glasses and a blue blazer, he spoke softly into a microphone answering questions for half an hour from about 50 Kiwanis members gathered for their weekly luncheon in a church meeting room.

"You could've heard a pin drop," said Al Fleming, who befriended Calley about 25 years ago and invited him to speak. "They were just slack-jawed that they were hearing this from him for the first time in nearly 40 years."

Both Fleming and Lennie Pease, the Kiwanis president, said yesterday that Calley's apology came at the beginning of his brief remarks before he began taking questions.

William George Eckhardt, the chief prosecutor in the My Lai cases, said yesterday he was unaware of Calley ever apologizing before. Eckhardt said that when he first heard the news, "I just sort of cringed."

"It's hard to apologize for murdering so many people," said Eckhardt, now a law professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. "But at least there's an acknowledgment of responsibility."

FOLLOWING ORDERS

Calley didn't deny taking part in the slayings on March 16, 1968, but insisted he was following orders from his superior, Capt. Ernest Medina — a notion Eckhardt, the former prosecutor, rejects.

Medina was also tried by a court-martial in 1971, and was acquitted of all charges.

Calley explained he had been ordered to take out My Lai, adding that he had intelligence that the village was fortified and would be "hot" when he went in. He also said the area was submitted to an artillery barrage and helicopter fire before his troops went in. It turned out that it was not hot and there was no armed resistance. But he had been told, he said, that if he left anyone behind, his troops could be trapped and caught in a crossfire.

Asked about American casualties, Calley said there were two injuries, but neither was the result of enemy fire, adding, "They didn't have time."

One person asked about the story of a helicopter coming into My Lai during the massacre and its pilot threatening to open fire if the killing of civilians didn't stop.

Calley said the pilot asked if he could take children out of the area and he relayed that request to his captain, who said the pilot could.

As far as any threats to fire on American soldiers by the pilot, or any threats of firing on the chopper, he said he does not recall hearing about that.

When asked if he broke the law by obeying an unlawful order, the newspaper reported Calley replied: "I believe that is true."

"If you are asking why I did not stand up to them when I was given the orders, I will have to say that I was a second lieutenant getting orders from my commander and I followed them — foolishly, I guess," Calley said.

MONTHS-LONG TRIAL

Calley's trial included four months of testimony in a Fort Benning courtroom and almost two weeks of jury deliberation before he was convicted of premeditated murder. After the verdict was read, but before sentencing, Calley was allowed to address the court.

"I'm not going to stand here and plead for my life or my freedom," he said. "If I have committed a crime, the only crime I have committed is in judgment of my values. Apparently I valued my troops' lives more than I did those of the enemy ..."

Pease said the Kiwanis Club tried to keep Calley's appearance on Wednesday quiet, not wanting to attract outside attention. He said it was obvious that Calley had difficulty speaking to a group, though he addressed every question head-on — and received a standing ovation when he finished.

"You could see that there was extreme remorse for everything that happened," Pease said. "He was very, very soft-spoken. It was a little difficult to hear him. You could see he was labored answering questions."

Calley now lives in Atlanta with his 28-year-old son, Laws, who is doing doctoral work in electrical engineering at Georgia Tech.

Though he has been free for years, Calley remains stripped of some of his civil rights.

"No, I still cannot vote," he said. "In fact, I'm not even supposed to go into the post office, I guess."

Fleming said he's spoken several times with Calley about his combat experiences in Vietnam. He describes Calley as "a compassionate guy," despite his infamous role at My Lai.

"I think he may feel like it was time to say something," Fleming said. "Over the years, I have come to know him so well that it doesn't seem like a great big thing anymore. But I guess it is."