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Originally Posted by SeijiSensei
I could don my cap of cynicism and suggest that perhaps the Justice Department wasn't all that enthusiastic about prosecuting the Blackwater guys to begin with. Judge Urbina's decision specifically observes that "senior, experienced" prosecutors warned the team that its "course of action threatened the viability of prosecution.”
Look at the criticisms Urbina levelled against the Justice Department's prosecutorial team:
"'The explanations offered by the prosecutors and investigators in an attempt to justify their actions and persuade the court that they did not use the defendants’ compelled testimony were all too often contradictory, unbelievable and lacking in credibility,' Judge Urbina wrote.
"The judge also criticized prosecutors for withholding 'substantial exculpatory evidence' from the grand jury that indicted the defendants, as well as for presenting 'distorted versions' of witnesses’ testimony and improperly telling the grand jury that some incriminating statements had been made by the defendants but were being withheld. "
Either we had a team that was much too eager to secure a conviction, or one that was much too eager to derail its own prosecution from the outset.
At least this incident, as horrible as it was, forced the US to accept Iraqi jurisdiction over US civilian contractors. I wonder what the agreement between NATO and the Kharzai government says about Afghani jurisdiction over the contractors working there.
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I think it has got to be an issue because it is Blackwater. These guys aren't just mercenaries, but the best fighters and operators a few countries' Special Forces can offer. They left the military to seek jobs at BW as it has more liberty in operation procedure compared to the militaries they used to belong to. To prosecute them can result in serious fallout if they hire themselves out to rogue organisations for revenge.
Remember that these guys are trained to fight up to 50 normal soldiers singlehandedly and end up standing on their bodies. It is their training that makes them incredibly dangerous as a foe.