The Virginian-Pilot
©
NORFOLK
A federal grand jury issued a new murder indictment against two former Blackwater security workers, charging one defendant with using a machine gun but reducing an attempted murder charge against both.
The grand jury didn't change the most serious charges against Christopher Drotleff and Justin Cannon. They remain charged with second-degree murder and related counts in the May 5, 2009, shooting deaths of two Afghan nationals and the wounding of a third.
The defendants are scheduled to be arraigned next week on the new indictment, but the Sept. 14 trial date is not expected to change. The grand jury issued the indictment Aug. 5.
Drotleff, of Virginia Beach, and Cannon, of Corpus Christi, Texas, were working for a subsidiary of Blackwater, also known as Xe, to train the Afghan police force in Kabul. The indictment alleges they were drinking that day when they became involved in a traffic accident and began firing their weapons at another car.
Drotleff and Cannon say they fired in self-defense, in fear for their lives, at a car that was speeding toward them. The government counters that the victims were all shot from behind.
The new indictment replaces a firearm charge against Cannon with use of a machine gun during the killings. The new charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison on conviction. The murder charge carries no minimum but a maximum of life in prison.
Court records say that Cannon was armed with an AK-47 machine gun that day, and Drotleff had a handgun. It has been unclear who fired at which victim.
Both men are charged with aiding and abetting each other in the murders of Rahib Mirza Mohammad and Romal Mohammad Naiem and the wounding of Fareed Haji Ahmad. Ahmad and Naiem were in the car; Mohammad was a pedestrian.
In a related filing, U.S. District Judge Robert G. Doumar issued a lengthy ruling on several pre trial motions, including what evidence the government can and cannot use against the defendants.
Doumar ruled that the government can submit to the jury evidence that the two men were drinking alcohol the day of the shootings. The two have denied that they were drinking, and their attorneys sought to prevent the government from using any evidence to the contrary.
"The state of mind of defendants at the time of the incident in question is of paramount importance," Doumar wrote. "In addition to providing, in part, the context of the alleged crime, any evidence of alcohol consumption might be directly probative of a material issue."
However, he barred the government from admitting written policies on the use of alcohol by Blackwater or the Army, saying that "would be unfairly prejudicial" to the defendants.
The court is preparing to send out a questionnaire in an effort to get a jump on jury selection. The 21-page questionnaire asks potential jurors for background information, law enforcement or military connections, whether they've heard about the case or know the defendants, and whether they can be impartial in a case involving victims who are Afghan Muslims.
Drotleff and Cannon remain jailed pending trial.
The U.S. attorney's office and lawyers for the defendants declined to comment on the latest developments.
Tim McGlone, (757) 446-2343, tim.mcglone@pilotonline.com
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Get off BW's Back
It's time to get off Blackwater's back and face a few realities.
In the case of Afghanistan, as a nation we balance our mission goals with the desire to leave a lighter US footprint than in past eras. We cannot do it without contractors. You may think they earn inflated salaries, but you are wrong. Incidentally, have you ever left an employer for a better paying job? Don't be a hypocrite. It isn't as high as you think when you put it all together, so let me help you.
In a complicated world, the simple fact is that as we have gutted our underpaid military and expanded our obligations to the world. We have defrayed the taxpayer cost of a soldier/sailor/marine by passing it off to their employers. Even though they "seem" to make a lot of money, the total cost of all US Govt contracts to Xe/BW in Afghanistan pales in comparison with the same number of military troops in their capacity. Many of whom would arrive with much poorer training. Most, though admittedly not all of these men did this for their respective services in the same way before leaving a variety of reasons, only one of them being more money. They are specialized in skills that have limited commercial value, a
Our government just don't know when to give up
As our liberal government fish for reasons to convict these employees of (Black water) so does the liberal media. Print media hate being refer to as liberal print media,but they have a tough time hiding the fact.
it just gets crazier
Despite the fact that federal prosecutors have a whopping 96% conviction rate, there are actually people calling the federal court system "liberal". I honestly believe Pilotonline is becoming a haven for the borderline insane.
Yeah right
those liberal federal grand juries...give me a break man.
"victims were all shot from behind"
They were attacking in reverse. What will they think of next?
Fair trial. Yeah, right.
"The 21-page questionnaire asks potential jurors for background information, law enforcement or military connections, whether they've heard about the case or know the defendants, and whether they can be impartial in a case involving victims who are Afghan Muslims."
The Pilot runs articles demeaning Xe/Blackwater weekly, prints everything the judge won't allow in court to further taint the jury pool,then mentions "Afghan Muslims" to further bring race and religion into the article.
The trolls are now writting the news not commenting on it.
Fair Trial?
The big question is.....will these guys get a fair trial? Probably not, as the contractor haters are out in full force to place the blame on them.And yes, I AM in Afghanistan, doing the same job as these guys were, trying to do the right thing, by my Country & my family.
"[T]rying to do the right
"[T]rying to do the right thing, by my Country & my family"
The true heroes are the members of the U.S. military - not those pulling down inflated salaries at taxpayer expense.
Thanks for the insight.
This is exactly why contractors cannot be trusted to work without strict oversight. This sense of exceptional-ism is dangerous and often counter productive to the goals of US strategy in Afghanistan.
You work for the taxpayers. Do your job and stop trying to be a part time spin doctor. You will earn much more respect.