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TechnoratiBlackwater Bodyguards Promised Immunity
WASHINGTON - The State Department promised Blackwater USA bodyguards immunity from prosecution in its investigation of last month's deadly shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians, The Associated Press has learned.
As a result, it will likely be months before the United States can - if ever - bring criminal charges in the case that has infuriated the Iraqi government.
"Once you give immunity, you can't take it away," said a senior law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.
A State Department spokesman did not have an immediate comment Monday. Both Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd and FBI spokesman Rich Kolko declined comment.
FBI agents were returning to Washington late Monday from Baghdad, where they have been trying to collect evidence in the Sept. 16 embassy convoy shooting without using statements from Blackwater employees who were given immunity.
Three senior law enforcement officials said all the Blackwater bodyguards involved - both in the vehicle convoy and in at least two helicopters above - were given the legal protections as investigators from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security sought to find out what happened. The bureau is an arm of the State Department.
Strained relationship with Iraq
The investigative misstep comes in the wake of already-strained relations between the United States and Iraq, which is demanding the right to launch its own prosecution of the Blackwater bodyguards.
Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell declined comment about the U.S. investigation. Based in Moyock, N.C., Blackwater USA is the largest private security firm protecting U.S. diplomats in Iraq.
The company has said its Sept. 16 convoy was under attack before it opened fire in west Baghdad's Nisoor Square, killing 17 Iraqis. A follow-up investigation by the Iraqi government, however, concluded that Blackwater's men were unprovoked. No witnesses have been found to contradict that finding.
An initial incident report by U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in Iraq, also indicated "no enemy activity involved" in the Sept. 16 incident. The report says Blackwater guards were traveling against the flow of traffic through a traffic circle when they "engaged five civilian vehicles with small arms fire" at a distance of 50 meters.
The FBI took over the case early this month, officials said, after prosecutors in the Justice Department's criminal division realized it could not bring charges against Blackwater guards based on their statements to the Diplomatic Security investigators.
Official: Guards spoke after given protection
Officials said the Blackwater bodyguards spoke only after receiving so-called "Garrity" protections, requiring that their statements only be used internally - and not for criminal prosecutions.
At that point, the Justice Department shifted the investigation to prosecutors in its national security division, sealing the guards' statements and attempting to build a case based on other evidence from a crime scene that was then already two weeks old.
The FBI has re-interviewed some of the Blackwater employees, and one official said Monday that at least several of them have refused to answer questions, citing their constitutional right to avoid self-incrimination. Any statements that the guards give to the FBI could be used to bring criminal charges.
A second official, however, said that not all the guards have cited their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination - leaving open the possibility for future charges. The official declined to elaborate.
Prosecutors will have to prove that any evidence they use in bringing charges against Blackwater employees was uncovered without using the guards' statements to State Department investigators. They "have to show we got the information independently," one official said.
Rare move
Garrity protections generally are given to police or other public law enforcement officers, and were extended to the Blackwater guards because they were working on behalf of the U.S. government, one official said. Experts said it's rare for them to be given to all or even most witnesses - particularly before a suspect is identified.
"You have to be careful," said Michael Horowitz, a former federal prosecutor in Manhattan and senior Justice Department official. "You have to understand early on who your serious subjects are in the investigation, and avoid giving these people the protections."
It's not clear why the Diplomatic Security investigators agreed to give immunity to the bodyguards, or who authorized doing so.
Bureau of Diplomatic Security chief Richard Griffin last week announced his resignation, effective Thursday. Senior State Department officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have said his departure was directly related to his oversight of Blackwater contractors.
Tyrrell, the Blackwater spokeswoman, said the company was alerted Oct. 2 that FBI would be taking over the investigation from the State Department. She declined further comment.
Government oversight boosted
On Oct. 3, State Department Sean McCormack said the FBI had been called in to assist Diplomatic Security investigators. A day later, he said the FBI had taken over the probe.
"We, internally and in talking with the FBI, had been thinking about the idea of the FBI leading the investigation for a number of different reasons," McCormack told reporters during an Oct. 4 briefing.
Last week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ordered a series of measures to boost government oversight of the private guards who protect American diplomats in Iraq. They include increased monitoring and explicit rules on when and how they can use deadly force.
Blackwater's contract with the State Department expires in May and there are questions whether it will remain as the primary contractor for diplomatic bodyguards. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has said his Cabinet is drafting legislation that would force the State Department to replace Blackwater with another security company.
Congress also is expected to investigate the shootings, but a House watchdog committee said it has so far held off based on a Justice Department request that lawmakers wait until the FBI concludes its inquiry.
© 2007 The Associated Press.
23 Comments so far
Show AllPMZ:
Go to bed. You are obviously suffering from sleep deprivation.
AMAZING! google "support blackwater" and see this:
Subject:
I support Blackwater.
To:
Sen. Arlen Specter
October 24, 2007
Dear Senator Specter,
I wanted to contact you and let you know that as an informed citizen who is not swayed by political propaganda, I have chosen to support Blackwater Worldwide in their dedication toward protecting US Diplomats, no matter what the cost. They (Blackwater and its many service-oriented, contracted men and women) are some of the most important people in the Middle-East and elsewhere right now. Here are some reasons why I believe you should support them.
(1). Taxes--If the Liberals succeed in removing the professionals in Blackwater from their jobs, taxes will go up and more troops will need to be transferred from their current jobs and shuffled about to protect the diplomats whom Blackwater is doing an excellent job of protecting right now.
(2). Expertise--Blackwater is comprised of uber-experienced ex-military and LE personnel, skilled in the art of bodyguarding and other important matters. There couldn't be a better organization available for hire.
(3). Personal sacrifice--Blackwater has lost many men and women in its devotion to protecting US diplomats; not one of which has died in the act of diplomatic negotiations.
Please support Blackwater Worldwide in every way possible.
Thank You,
PMZ
This is called, 'supporting the troops'. Get those 'security guards' to make Iraqis good and mad, and then the troops can put their lives on the line absorbing the Iraqi attacks that result.
US troops are being USED for cannon fodder. They are there for two reasons:
1. to absorb attacks and keep fighting Iraqis who naturally respond to atrocities done by the likes of Blackwater.
2. to be a pool of recruits for Blackwater. The troops get so brutalized by fighting innocent Iraqis in what the troops know is an illegal invasion that some of them will get twisted so bad they will develop a real taste for killing human beings. That kind will then be recurited by Blackwater. By then they are just the right kind of psychos to do the job.
KEM PATRICK You are right on. How could the government prosecute men for doing what the government pays them to do.
Corporate 'security guards' are paid by the government to indiscriminately kill Iraqis so they will react and the occupation will continue.
See it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REiJf5sdVb4
Here you see 'security agents' doing exactly what they are instructed to do: earn Iraqi hatred, solicit Iraqi reprisals, keep the occupation going.
And of course it is win win for companies like Blackwater. $200,000 in government contracts before the invasion, over $1,000,000,000 after the invasion. More fighting, more profits.
What else but immunity?
Pelosi, Reid and their supporters have blood on their hands. When an "opposition" party allows these repeated crimes to proceed without investigations or even a word of condemnation, you know they're cashing in on Blackwater's profits. The Democratic Party needs to be wiped out.
And isn't Hillary tied to Blackwater? Her top adviser Mark Penn is CEO of the PR Firm Burson Marsteller, who's done work for Blackwater and other questionable firms.
America, what is wrong with you? The idiot in the White House is nothing but a corporate shill! Boot his arse out of there! He belongs on trial for the crap he has pulled since his political party put his sorry rear-end in office! Get him out of there!
The only Blackwater (synonym for sewage) employees who've got justice so far are the four who got roasted and hung from the bridge in Fallujah. At least the citizens of that city have some sense of fairplay.
Why shouldn't the Republicrooks offer immunity to Blackwater? Did they not castrate the Democrooks two elections ago. Who's to stop them? The American people, who NEVER had any balls aren't going to do anything about it either. I hate to say this, but the United Fakes of AmeriKKKa could use a Fidel Castro type.
Waiting to see "Support our Blackwaters" decals on cars.
Troops and Blackwater do the same job, and are paid for by the same master.
Disgusting? But true.
Come on Iraq, throw the bums out and make it only the beginning.
I pledge allegiance to the star spangled butcher's apron of the United States of Atrocities, and to the theocracy for which it stands, one homeland under surveillance, with oppression and injustice for all.
Disgusting, vicious, murdering, evil, scumbag motherf**kers should be stranded in the middle of the desert with their guns and nothing else. It's astounding how the piece of s**t right-wingers(including your Prez) say we have to "Support the troops" yeah right: extended tours of duty, low pay, no benefits when they get home, and NO PICTURES of the coffins of the dead! And we pay these bastards a fortune in our tax dollars! Anyone who receives dividends from investments in "defense" companies there is BLOOD on your hands!
redjeff October 29th, 2007 9:33 pm
Sounds like Cheney: "I'm not really part of any branch of government, so the constitution doesn't apply to what I do.... Now give me Executive Priviledge protections."
mastershake--good point. They can act outside of any law until someone wants to make them pay, then they all want Constitutional protections.
"Once you give immunity you can't take it away," an official was quoted as saying. OK fine. So turn them all over to the Iraqi authorities to do with as they please. Meanwhile, Blackwater should be blackballed; don't just rescind their contract--close down their business.
A license to kill
I thought they declared over and over again that they weren't bound to US law (or International or Iraq law for that matter), and now they want to try to cash in on US legal protections?
BTW, remember the US Govt pays the Blackwater mercs to kill to. The military gets a direct paycheck. Blackwater mercs have their company paid by the US Gov, then Blackwater issues the paychecks to the mercs. But its all you tax dollars at work either way.
007 License to Kill
How can our government prosecute the men for doing what our government pays them to do?
THE TED NUGENT WELFARE PROGRAM
The comments below were posted at slate.com (Hot Documents -Blackwater SOS) on 10-27 and by the evening of 10-28, there were 8 views. This morning, the number of views had dropped to 1 while view numbers for other comments were not affected. No response from slate.com was provided to date when asked what happened - perhaps it was hacked.
Blackwater is an upscale refuge for the more sophisticated and militant Billy Bobs and Bubbas, disenfranchised by a politically correct society that prohibits "men from being men".
Underneath the glistening shield of Patriot Warrior Extraordinaire lies a fleet of Big Foot muscle trucks filled with professional wrestlers loaded down with Rambo weapons, itching for revenge ... well, a fight ... ok, to provide professional protection to high value civilians in dangerous areas.
Contrary to the notion that the instinct not to kill must be overcome to train a soldier, these guys were herding their siblings into corners of the house with water pistols and SWAT tactics at the age of 12.
The government psychologists and private consultants love the cost-effective self-selection that matches perfectly the thrill-to-kill with controlled, displaced aggression, the latter otherwise known as "protective disorder" among the more experienced.
It puts Blackwater candidates squarely on the desired mix of dominance-submission in the Meyers-Briggs mapping. It's like finding employees who would do it for free, so they get $350/day in producer surplus income while the other $650/day goes to Blackwater overhead to create more programs.
At 26 million dollars a man (Bremer), Blackwater's never lost a client. Well hey, the competition wanted 25 million but they were depreciating their helicopters over 60 days instead of 30 and that was kicked out as an unrealistic bid. That's also why there's no competitive bids anymore.
Blackwater is also a golden path to retirement up for ex-military elites from sources like the Navy Seals or Army Rangers, which absorb all the expense of training and pass it on as a subsidy to Blackwater. That way taxpayers who think they're paying once for obscene amounts stuffed into cost-plus contracts actually pay twice or more.
Coached by Hillary's PR team, Erik Prince et al will surely find more "cost-effective" ways to deal with "active shooter" situations like that in Columbine ... all those security people hiding outside while the killers raged inside ... nothing like a Virginia Tech event to keep the fear and stock pumpted up ...
With only 800 plus SWAT raids annually in the U.S., this is an important opportunity for Blackwater to "save" U.S. taxpayers even more in reduced taxes and spending while increasing security with more privatized, cost-effective, one-stop shopping solutions available only from Blackwater.
And Blackwater promises, if they shoot you or the family dog by accident, no one will laugh and you get a free trip to the hospital in one of their helicopters.
As a security employee, Blackwater provides unique job satisfaction through imposed order on those around you with whatever threat, intimidation and humiliation necessary to maintain legal or illegal law and order, whichever it may be.
As a government procurement administrator, it's the perfect solution for avoiding responsibility and seeking out the highest possbile cost solutions. As a U.S. or Iraqi citizen, all insurance and other inefficient piecemeal forms of protection can now be dropped as unnecessary expense.
Like a good neighbor, Blackwater will be there. That's Blackwater's stand.
All protectionist groups should know that if they engage in random shooting of Iraqi civilians, they will pay the ultimate price. Too bad the U.S. Government will not enforce that type of policy, because we all know that it is complicit in the protection of renegade groups.
"It's not clear why the Diplomatic Security investigators agreed to give immunity to the bodyguards, or who authorized doing so."
Sure it is clear - crystal clear. If there is one thing the Bush Administration and Justice Deparment do very effectively, it is making air-tight cases against prosecution of their own people. This all was planned ahead of time, just the same way the Bush Administration went to significant lengths to ensure none of the U.S. troops can be tried in Iraq for war crimes. And Henry Waxman will continue issuing scathing letters to Erik Prince, but no action will be taken. I am sure that Prince is shaking in his shoes - NOT! If these Blackwater renegades are above the law and immune from prosecution, they need to be handled in such a fashion, even if it means public hanging.
All part of the plan. Keep them there so 1. To keep tensions over there 2. To keep the genocide going 3. To keep them nice and trained (also, jacked) up for when they do come home -to round up FEMA camp detainees.
It's all sick, what they're doing. You know who I'm talking about. If you don't, or you're one of those people who ignore it and (try to) play it off.
Either way, everybody needs to see (or refresh yourself with -refresh doesn't seem quite appropriate) YouTube videos' illuminati, skull and bones society, bohemian grove,,, population control, fema detention centers etc, etc, etc, etc...
God (or whomever you worship) Bless you all.