The Center for Constitutional Rights filed a second lawsuit Wednesday against Blackwater Worldwide for assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress, wrongful death and war crimes. The second lawsuit concerns a Sept. 9 shooting in Baghdad that the prosecutors allege Blackwater guards fired into a crowd of civilians unprovoked. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of Ali Husaamaldeen Ibrahim al Bazzaz, whom the group says died during the incident.
The lawsuit refers to Blackwater guards as “shooters” and “mercenaries” operating without discretion in Iraq. The human rights groups relies on news reports from the incident, but the prosecutors say they will be able to use Blackwater's own documents for the trial against the security firm.
The first lawsuit filed by the Center for Constitutional Rights involves a Sept. 16 incident at Nisoor Square in downtown Baghdad where 17 Iraqi civilians died during a shoot-out between Blackwater guards and unidentified insurgents. Investigators found Blackwater security personnel fired indiscriminately in 14 of the 17 shooting deaths of Iraqi civilians on Sept. 16. The FBI said the contractors violated deadly-force rules in effect for security contractors, suggesting the contractors acted recklessly. Officials familiar with the case say they are cynical about the ability to prosecute individuals in the case because the legal framework outlining government contractors is ambiguous and inadequate.
The legal framework outlining the use of private security contractors is not parallel to their operational framework. Iraqi law, as established under the Coalition Provisional Authority, states that contractors are immune from prosecution. Order 17, issued by L. Paul Bremer III, grants immunity from Iraqi law in exchange for prosecution of crimes in U.S. military courts. Yet, the legal status of contractors remains ambiguous. On one hand, contractors are not part of the military and therefore are not accountable to the U.S. Uniform Code of Military Justice, but to civilian laws. On the other hand, security contractors are part of the force package in Iraq, and cannot be held accountable under civilian laws.
In 2006, Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., amended the UCMJ to include contractors, but this too remains unclear as firms like Blackwater provide security to civilian agencies and are not integrated into military forces. Furthermore, prosecuting civilian contractors is hampered by environmental issues. A typical civilian would rely on an intact crime scene to provide evidence, but in the case of Iraq, that is something of a luxury. Proceeding under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act, which extends civilian laws to civilians supporting combat operations, may prove the ultimate avenue for examination.
