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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
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January 7th,
2009 - Former Blackwater Guard from Rochester Pleads Not Guilty in Killings |
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Former Blackwater Guard from
Rochester Pleads Not Guilty in Killings By Jason Claffey Foster’s Daily Democrat January 7, 2009 Rochester - City native and
former Blackwater Worldwide security guard Evan Liberty pleaded not guilty to
all 35 federal charges levied against him and four colleagues for their role
in a deadly Baghdad shooting last year, amid a new report that contradicts
U.S. prosecutors' claims the guards' actions were unprovoked. After each entered not
guilty pleas on all counts during an arraignment at a federal courthouse in
Washington, D.C., Judge Ricardo Urbina set a trial date for Jan. 29, 2010,
according to William Coffield, Liberty's lawyer. Urbina also gave defense
lawyers one week to file two separate motions to dismiss the case for lack of
probable cause and change the venue of the trial. U.S. prosecutors charged the
guards under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act, which Coffield
said is not applicable in this case. The defense lawyers maintain the men
acted in self-defense and never meant to harm civilians in the Sept. 16,
2007, incident in Nisoor Square that left 17 Iraqis dead. On those grounds, Coffield
said the lawyers will seek to have the case dismissed. "We strongly disagree
with the allegations and are anxious to prove them wrong," he said. The lawyers also want to
have the case moved to Utah, where the men turned themselves in and were
arrested last month and where one, Donald Ball, resides in West Valley City.
Having the trial there would increase the chances of drawing a more
"sympathetic" jury, one of the lawyers told reporters last month. Coffield said the place of
arrest or residence of the defendant typically determines where a trial is
held. "None of these people
live in Washington, D.C., and none of these people were arrested in
Washington, D.C.," Coffield said. Urbina set a Feb. 17 hearing
for the defense motions. Liberty and Ball, along with
Dustin Heard of Knoxville, Tenn.; Nick Slatten of Sparta, Tenn.; and Paul
Slough, of Keller, Texas, were charged with 14 counts of manslaughter, 20
counts of attempted manslaughter and one count of using a firearm to commit violence.
All are highly decorated U.S. military veterans. U.S. prosecutors maintained
the shootings were unprovoked. "This is a
straightforward shooting of a lot of people," Assistant U.S. Attorney
Kenneth Kohl said during the arraignment, according to The Associated Press. The AP also reported it
reviewed an eight-minute transcript of Blackwater radio logs recorded during
the incident and found it "raised questions" about the claim the
shootings were unprovoked. The transcript, characterized as "hectic,"
has the guards repeatedly reporting incoming gunfire from insurgents and
Iraqi police, the AP reported. According to arrest
affidavits, the shooting began after 19 Blackwater employees, including the
five charged guards, set up a roadblock with four armored vehicles in Nisoor
Square in response to a car bombing a mile away. The group ignored an order
to return to the International "Green" Zone, and one or more
members began shooting at a white Kia Sedan that approached them. The driver,
a medical student, was killed. The guards then turned their weapons on
fleeing cars and civilians, killing 17 and injuring 20, according to the
affidavits. The affidavits do not
mention specifically the roles any of the five guards played in the
shootings. "I can only say, for
whatever reason, the government has picked them out and made the accusations
that they have," Coffield said. A sixth guard, Jeremy
Ridgeway, of California, struck a plea deal with prosecutors and was charged
with one count each of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter. He was not at
Tuesday's arraignment, Coffield said, and it remains unknown if he will
testify against his former colleagues. External link: http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090107/GJNEWS_01/701079884/0/FRONTPAGE |