Hunter, a Marine Corps veteran, made the remarks while speaking about the case of Eddie Gallagher, the Navy SEAL chief who is accused of killing an Islamic State prisoner under his care. Gallagher, who has pleaded not guilty, also took pictures next to the slain man, according to news reports.

“Eddie did one bad thing that I’m guilty of, too — taking a picture of the body and saying something stupid,” Hunter said at the meeting about border issues in the Southern California town of Ramona, according to the Times of San Diego.

Hunter, who served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan when he was on active duty (he later was deployed to Afghanistan as a reservist, as well), said he had taken pictures “just like that when I was overseas,” according to the Times. Hunter said he did not text or post the images.

The San Diego Union-Tribune also reported that Hunter had made the remarks. The town hall was mostly focused on border-security issues.