Justice Department Close To Charging Blackwater Guards In Iraq Shooting

Washington Post:

Federal prosecutors have sent target letters to six Blackwater Worldwide security guards involved in a September shooting that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead, indicating a high likelihood the Justice Department will seek to indict at least some of the men, according to three sources close to the case.

The guards, all former U.S. military personnel, were working as security contractors for the State Department, assigned to protect U.S. diplomats and other non-military officials in Iraq. The shooting occurred when their convoy arrived at a busy square in central Baghdad and guards tried to stop traffic.

An Iraqi government investigation concluded that the security contractors fired without provocation. Blackwater has said its personnel acted in self-defense.

Read the whole story: Washington Post

Comments

[getoffmedz]

Wow. This story died fast in MSM.

heh

[AmericaninProtest]

What about Erik Prince?

It is always the little guys (guilty as they are) who will be punished.

[usakaput]

mccain and prince 08

[Moshe]

We will soon see whether the Rule of Law in this Nation has been so thoroughly degraded that it is now possible for fascist corporate thugs to literally get away with murder.

Fascism defined (Lawrence Britt):

The 14 characteristics of fascism are:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause

4. Supremacy of the Military

5. Rampant Sexism

6. Controlled Mass Media

7. Obsession with National Security

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined

9. Corporate Power is Protected

10. Labor Power is Suppressed

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption

14. Fraudulent Elections

Sound familiar?

It's still your Nation.

Take it back.

[Jared137]

Doubt it will happen. The justice department has become an enemy of the people.

[usakaput]

our dear decider will pardon these thugs.nothing will happen to them as long as prince the punk gives generously to the party.you dumb americans are so full of false hope.

[getoffmedz]

Sure. This will go far.

[rroy]

In a couple short weeks it will be a year since occupation force mercinaries panicked,went burzerk and killed 17 citizens(very little is heard about the wounded),of a country that never attacked nor had any means to attack us!
Prior to and after this incident we have picked up people in that country and other countries ,heald them indefinately and often mistreated them,using the flimziest evidense.Some have been heald for years with no idea or information as to why they are imprisoned.
One wonders just how far or different are we from from the Nazis of WW2 who comitted reprisals for things like anti Occupation actions in Lidici Czechoslovakia.
Too often history has ways of repeating itself,tragicaly only the sides have changed!

[fact finder]

"Justice department close to indicting Blackwater " Close only counts in horse shoes, hand grenades and Nuclear devices. When these animals are convicted, sentenced and actually doing hard time then I will be satisfied. That means ALL of them including Prince.

[Gary47]

Agreed completely. I've never favored the death penalty but it seems especially appropriate for these goons doing the shooting.

[wndrwrthg]

Skip the death penalty, just sentence them to lifetime tours in Iraq.

[OhComeOnNow]

Throw them all in Gitmo and throw away the key.

[scooperss]

*Close* but no *cigar*.

Pun intended.

[gtalkspolitics]

Hey anyone notice since the spotlight began to shine on Balckwater the violence in Iraq immediately halted? than they had the agreement between both political fractions in Iraq , than the surge. if one follows the timeline of events it leaves one to wonder.

[bascombe]

that report is a lie.

[Roxanna]

It seems they are always....So Close..... Yet .....So Far Away...

I wish Americans and Congress would Rethink having Contract Workers All Together!

Along with our Over Inflated break the country Defense Spending Bill ! Congress has run a credit card debt that frankly I don't think Americans are capable of paying. Living beyond our means with corruption all afloat.

[mouselion]

"If it is determined that an individual acted improperly, Blackwater would support holding that person accountable,"

In other words, "we'll let some low-ranking member of our organization go down but *we're* not going to take responsibility, oh no."

More of the same "Sh*t runs down hill" philosophy modeled on military hierarchal justice.