|
The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
|
July 10th,
2010 - Judge Won’t Drop Charges Against Ex-Blackwater Contractors News article from the
Virginian-Pilot |
|
Judge Won’t Drop
Charges Against Ex-Blackwater Contractors By Tim McGlone The Virginian-Pilot July 10, 2010 Norfolk - A federal judge
Friday refused to throw out charges against two former Blackwater security
workers accused of killing two Afghan civilians, clearing the way for a
September trial. Lawyers for Christopher
Drotleff and Justin Cannon challenged the constitutionality of the indictment
against the two men, claiming that the long arm of the U.S. government could
not extend to Afghan soil. U.S. District Judge Robert
G. Doumar quickly dismissed that notion. "You're asking that he
be sent back to Afghanistan" to face charges there? Doumar asked
Cannon's lawyer. "Is that what you really want?" "That's not an option
for this court," said Assistant Federal Public Defender Larry Dash, one
of Cannon's lawyers. Drotleff, of Virginia Beach,
and Cannon, of Texas, were charged under a 10-year-old act of Congress meant
to close loopholes that prevented the government from charging nonmilitary
civilians with crimes committed outside the territorial jurisdiction of the
United States. Dash argued that the men
couldn't be charged because they were off duty and outside the American base
where they were stationed. Doumar disagreed. "I think the act is
constitutional," Doumar said. "You can take it up with the Supreme
Court of the United States." The attorneys said the act
has never been challenged before the nation's highest court. Drotleff and Cannon were
employed by Paravant, a subsidiary of Blackwater - now known as Xe - in May
2009. They were based at Camp Alamo in Kabul, training the Afghan National
Army on the use of weapons. The indictment alleges that
both men fired at unarmed Afghan civilians following a traffic accident in
Kabul, killing two and wounding a third. The trial is set for Sept. 14. In recent court filings,
government prosecutors say Cannon and Drotleff were "drinking
heavily" in the early evening hours of May 5, 2009, while attending
parties at bases around Kabul. After returning to their
home camp, they were specifically ordered not to leave but jumped in a
vehicle anyway, armed with guns, to drive some Afghan interpreters to a taxi
stand, the court papers say. A car they were traveling
with was involved in an accident ahead of their vehicle. Two Afghans in
another car approached and stopped to offer assistance. Prosecutors said
Cannon and Drotleff "became combative" with the two men and opened
fire on them as they tried to drive away. One man in the car was killed, as
well as a passer-by. Drotleff and Cannon say they
fired in self-defense, fearful that the Afghans were attacking them. Drotleff's family is trying
to drum up support for him through a Facebook page they established. The
page, called Support Chris Drotleff, appears to be maintained by his wife and
includes a diary of her jail visits with him and letters he wrote. In one letter, dated June
16, Drotleff says the "truth keeps seeping out" as he gets closer
to trial: "My question is when
all this is over and that jury says 'Not Guilty' what do I get back? Do I get
back my daughter's infant months? Do I get back my son's 4th birthday? Do I
get back all this time lost with my family? Do I get back the financial
damage done by this case? Do I get back the 'I love you daddy's' at
bedtime?" External link: http://hamptonroads.com/2010/07/judge-wont-drop-charges-against-exblackwater-contractors |