WASHINGTON — An infamous chapter of the Iraq War closed Wednesday as a jury convicted four former Blackwater Worldwide contractors of killing unarmed civilians in the chaotic streets of Baghdad.
The former Blackwater men were charged with killing 14 civilians and wounding others on Sept. 16, 2007, at Nisour Square in what defense attorneys called a legitimate defensive action and prosecutors labeled a massacre.
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Obama voices optimism
WASHINGTON — President Obama expressed confidence Wednesday about the ability to contain Ebola in the U.S., taking special note of the ongoing recovery of two nurses who contracted the disease and of others who were declared Ebola-free after being exposed to the deadly virus.
“We’re cautiously optimistic,” he declared.
He also gave assurances that hospitals across the country were becoming better prepared to deal with Ebola.
Texas nurse Ebola-free
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Doctors no longer detect Ebola in a Texas nurse who flew to Ohio and back before she was diagnosed with the virus, her family said Wednesday.
Officials at Emory University Hospital and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention couldn’t detect Ebola in Amber Vinson as of Tuesday evening, her family said in a statement released through a media consultant.
Vinson’s mother, Debra Berry, spoke to her Wednesday, and Vinson has been approved for transfer from isolation, the statement said.
Vinson, 29, remains in treatment at Emory, near Atlanta.
Vinson helped care for a Liberian man with Ebola who died at a Dallas hospital. Another nurse there also became infected and is being treated outside Washington; her condition was upgraded from fair to good.
NBC cameraman released
OMAHA, Neb. — An American video journalist who has recovered from Ebola at an Omaha hospital was heading home to Rhode Island on a Wednesday night flight with his parents, hospital officials said.
Ashoka Mukpo, 33, of Providence, who contracted the virus while working in Liberia as a freelance cameraman for NBC, was released from the Nebraska Medical Center’s biocontainment unit at 9 a.m.
“This verdict is a resounding affirmation of the commitment of the American people to the rule of law, even in times of war,” said U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen.
The long-awaited verdicts came on the 28th day of jury deliberations that began Sept. 2. The jury of eight women and four men convicted Dustin L. Heard of Maryville, Tenn.; Evan S. Liberty of Rochester, N.H.; and Paul A. Slough of Keller, Texas, on multiple voluntary manslaughter charges.
They were also found guilty of multiple counts of attempt to commit voluntary manslaughter, as well as weapons charges.
Nicholas A. Slatten of Sparta, Tenn., was convicted of first-degree murder.
“Seven years ago, these Blackwater contractors unleashed powerful sniper fire, machine guns and grenade launchers on innocent men, women and children,” Machen said. “Today, they were held accountable for that outrageous attack and its devastating consequences for so many Iraqi families.”
Once the verdicts were in and a mistrial declared on three remaining counts, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ordered the men taken into immediate custody, over the objections of defense attorneys.
“We believe there’s a substantial likelihood that a motion for a new trial will be granted,” said defense attorney Brian Heberlig. “Over the past seven years, the defendants have shown by clear and convincing evidence that they pose no risk to the community.”
Prosecutors successfully argued that the men were a risk for flight.
The diplomatically sensitive case has been closely watched in Iraq, where memories of widespread civilian casualties during the U.S.-led occupation remain vivid. Certain precincts of North Carolina have also paid close attention. The state is home to the firm, which is no longer called Blackwater.
Founded by former Navy SEAL Erik Prince in 1997, Blackwater grew during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of the U.S. government’s reliance on private contractors. Its reputation blackened by the Nisour Square shootings, the company changed its name to Xe Services in 2009. It’s since been renamed Academi, with new owners and a board that includes former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft.
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