Hurdles to Blackwater Prosecutions
The government faces many hurdles if it decides to prosecute Blackwater security guards for a Sept. 16 incident in which they killed 17 Iraqis.
“A patchwork of laws that are largely untested, and practical obstacles to building cases in war zones, have all but insulated contractors from accountability,” the New York Times concludes.
A 2006 amendment says the Uniform Code of Military Justice governs contractors “in declared wars or contingency operations.” But it’s unclear if the amendment covers Blackwater guards, since they work for the civilian State Department rather than the Defense Department, the Times says. And it may be unconstitutional to try civilians under military laws.
A prosecution under civilian laws also presents challenges. Foreign witnesses would have to travel to the United States, and the evidence gathered by Iraqis would likely be challenged as unreliable.
The State Department could waive immunity for the guards to allow them to be tried in Iraqi courts, but that is unlikely, according to the article.
