Scahill: Setback for Iraqis’ suit against Blackwater actually a victory

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http://rawstory.com/2009/10/judge-iraqi-lawsuits-blackwater-proceed/

Scahill: Setback for Iraqis’ suit against Blackwater actually a victory

By Stephen C. Webster
Saturday, October 24th, 2009 -- 7:10 pm


Five war crimes suits filed by Iraqis against the private security firm Blackwater will be allowed to continue after lawyers for the mercenary group petitioned to have them dismissed.

U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III ruled on Wednesday that the suits would be dismissed, but he is allowing the plaintiffs to refile on the condition that they make specific claims and present evidence that Blackwater -- now known as Xe -- perpetuated a "culture of lawlessness" that led to indiscriminate murder and beatings.

The Nation magazine's Jeremy Scahill, one of the media's foremost experts on the private security firm, told Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman on Friday that the ruling was actually quite good for the Iraqis and the mainstream press had gotten the story completely wrong.

http://www.democracynow.org/2009/10/23/black

The ruling is "a very well-thought-out legal argument by Judge Ellis, where he’s essentially saying to Blackwater, 'Your argument that you can’t be sued as a private company under the Alien Tort Statute is false. Your argument that private individuals or companies cannot commit war crimes is false,'" Scahill said.

"Xe's lawyers had argued that the lawsuits should be dismissed under any circumstances because the allegations involve political questions that cannot be resolved by the judiciary and because private entities cannot be sued under the Alien Tort Statute," the Associated Press noted Wednesday. " Ellis rejected those arguments.

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