When Democracy Now! Thats how I work.. Helvenston arrived in Kuwait on March 18, where he was under the management of John and Kathy Potter, whom he knew from Combat Missions. And I said, I want an incident report on Scotty. And I said, I want a copy of his contract that he signed with you. And he said, Why? And I said, I just want to know what happened. He said I could he would get it to me in the next few weeks. had a contract with Halliburton with K.B.R., the subsidiary of Halliburton. The families of four private security contractors killed in Fallujah in March 2004 have filed a ground-breaking lawsuit charging Blackwater USA with fraud and wrongful death. Helvenston arrived in Kuwait on March 18, where he was under the management of John and Kathy Potter, whom he knew from Combat Missions. He trained Demi Moore for her film G.I. Helvenston began training at Blackwater USA's facilities in March 2004, and developed a personal conflict with head trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown. They were told that they were able to do a risk assessment of every trip, and if the threat was too dangerous, that they could decline the mission. You may unsubscribe or adjust your preferences at any time. And so, did they assume the risk? AMY GOODMAN: Were going to break, Katy. Given the uncounted tens of thousands of Iraqis who have died since the invasion and the slaughter in Falluja that followed the Blackwater incident, some might say this lawsuit is just warmongers bickeringno honor among thieves. Thats not what I was hired to do. And at that point McQuown apparently told him that if he didnt do it, he would be fired immediately. Blackwater is scooping up lucrative Homeland Security contracts. Initially they put us in separate hotels. In early 2004 Helvenston was between jobs and was eking out a living with the stints on reality TV, the movie consulting and the fitness videos. AMY GOODMAN: Each of you in separate hotels? The night before he left, Helvenston sent an e-mail to the Owner, President and Upper Management of Blackwater, subject: extreme unprofessionalism. In this e-mail, obtained by The Nation, he complained that the behavior of McQuown (referred to as Justin Shrek in the e-mail) was very manipulative, duplicitive [sic], immature and unprofessional. He describes how his original team leader tried to appeal to Shrek not to reassign him, but, Helvenston wrote, I think [the team leader] felt that there was a hidden agenda. Over a thousand people died because of what happened to Scotty that day, says Katy Helvenston. placementName: "thenation_right_rail", Iraqis physically did it, and it doesnt get any more horrible than what they did to my son, does it? We will not be intimidated, he said. The gruesome image is soon beamed across the globe. JUAN GONZALEZ: And how unusual is it to take someone out of their team and assign them to another team and send them out on a mission? COL. JOHN A. TOOLAN, U.S. Marines: Contractors were easily identified on the roads because they were all in brand-new SUVs 2004 SUV, tinted windows. Erik Prince, himself, for this piece I worked with the Center for Public Integrity, and we put together a profile of Erik Princes familys political contributions. And at that point, Scotty was desperate for money, and he went in there. This is a precedent-setting case, says Marc Miles, an attorney for the families. Without the big gun, without the third man, without the armored vehicle, they were sitting ducks, says Callahan. KATY HELVENSTON: Yes, and Mark Burnett produced that movie. AMY GOODMAN: Were also joined by Katy Helvenston. To submit a correction for our consideration, click here. And I had actually flown up there one weekend and spent the weekend with them. And just like any town in America of 20,000 to 30,000 folks, youre going to have situations where there are crimes committed and wrongful conduct. [6] v. Blackwater Security is the lawsuit for wrongful death filed by the families of the four contractors for Blackwater Security (since renamed Academi) murdered in the 31 March 2004 Fallujah ambush. And only the one person that survived the thing, and the whole team had to survive, so if someone on a team didnt make it through, then the whole team was pretty much eliminated. A few nights before Scott was killed, and actually the night before he left Kuwait to go to Baghdad, he sent an email to the owner, president and upper management of Blackwater, and the subject of that email was extreme unprofessionalism. And in this email, which we have, he is complaining about Justin McQuown, who he refers to as Justin Shrek. Scott Helvenston apparently thought his actual name was Shrek and was referring to him as Justin Shrek throughout the email. Please do your part today. For more on this ground-breaking lawsuit, we are joined by the three guests: JUAN GONZALEZ: This is an excerpt from _Frontline_s program Private Warriors, a documentary on the role of private military contractors working in Iraq. KATY HELVENSTON: That exact incident. They were told that they were able to do a pre-trip inspection of the routes and be able to familiarize themselves with the area before going on routes. And then the reports are that E.S.S. Well, he was a Navy Seal for about 12 years, and he resigned from the Navy, and times got tough. One team member, former Army Ranger Wes Batalona, complained to a friend that the team had never worked together before. McQuown refused to allow it. units for the Middle East. Would he speak to them? Stephen "Scott" Helvenston (June 21, 1965 - March 31, 2004) was a United States Navy SEAL.He was working as a security contractor for Blackwater Security when he was killed in the 31 March 2004 Fallujah ambush within days of arriving in Iraq.. Helvenston was a personal trainer for Hollywood celebrities such as Demi Moore (for G.I. According to the lawsuit, It was virtually unheard of to take a single person, like Scott Helvenston, and place him on a different group with whom he had never trained or even met. Helvenston resisted the change. They said it was the direct line. Not so, say the families of the four men and their lawyers. AMY GOODMAN: Months later. And he did say, Well, its nice to meet you, and then he turned around and left. They were not provided with the armored vehicles or able to do the pre-trip inspection or the risk assessment. And they said contractor, and I was thinking of maybe they were working on the pipelines, oil lines or something. Locations: Summerfield FL, Ocklawaha FL, . What we have right now is something worse than the wild, wild west going on in Iraq, Callahan says. V. Blackwater Security - Facts & Allegations. Justin McQuown's nickname, according to documents we've gotten and to other people who were in Kuwait and Iraq at the time, was "Shrek," after the green ogre character, and it doesn't . Name. You need to show intent. VIDEO: People in Denmark Are a Lot Happier Than People in the United States. One of the people profiled in the story is Katy Helvenston, the mother of 38-year-old Scott Helvenston, who was killed on that day in Fallujah. The other guys were Army Rangers, and they were all very, very experienced combat soldiers. This was not a roadside bomb, it was not any other explosive device. . We speak with Jeremy Scahill as well as Katy Helvenston, the mother of Scott Helvenston who was killed in Fallujah, and the attorney in the case, Marc Miles. All four guards were shot and killed. You said they had no map? And then I finally got one email back from Chris Taylor, who you guys also were dealing with, whos the Blackwater vice president. AMY GOODMAN: What did he think he was going to be doing? I mean, thats I knew it was him from his looks, everything. Thats whats very upsetting. An analysis of Princes contributions prepared for The Nation by the Center for Responsive Politics reveals that since 1989, Prince and his wife have given some $275,550 to Republican campaigns. Insurgents would ambush them from behind. The State Department regulations call for six people to be on a security detail in Iraq, because of the security situation, while these men were sent out with only four. Helvenston et al. and State Department official that Blackwater hired up, was in the country of Jordan announcing that Blackwater was interested in essentially farming out its services to the highest bidder to engage in overt combat missions. JUAN GONZALEZ: But, Marc Miles, Blackwater can claim that the men who sign on with them know exactly the kind of dangers that theyre going into, that they signed contracts that recognized the possible dangers and loss of life or injury that they may suffer. They were killed by insurgents literally walking up and shooting them with small-arms fire. The suit further alleges that McQuown intervened and ordered only a four-man team be sent, although six were available, the other two remaining to perform clerical duties. Altogether an estimated 20,000 non-Iraqi civilian contractors are now working for the United States inside Iraq. Instead of being . Blackwater is able to operate over there in Iraq free from any oversight that would typically exist in a civilized society. When they finally said Blackwater, I thought, and I just looked up on the internet and got an 800-number, and I called them, and I said, My name is Katy. I said, Scotty Helvenston is my son. Right now, its my understanding that U.S. law doesnt apply, because it did not happen in the U.S.; military law doesnt apply; and Iraqi law, well, there is no Iraqi law, and so, as things stand now, they literally can get away with murder. And Bush jokes about it. Later that night, according to Scotts mother, McQuown came up to Helvenstons hotel room. covers war or gun violence, were not brought to you by the weapons manufacturers. The men were working for Blackwater USA, one of the biggest security firms operating in Iraq. And they, at that time, asked specifically for the incident report and a copy of the contract. About 6,000 of these are security contractors. These men and women are never included in the death tolls provided by the Pentagon or reported on in the media. As always, click on the title of the post above. JUAN GONZALEZ: Id like to ask Marc Miles, on the day then that these four Blackwater employees are killed, theyre sent into Fallujah. He was a great golfer. Username. I wasnt kidding. And, Mr. President, how do you propose to bring private military contractors under a system of law? KATY HELVENSTON: Yeah. He is currently a Puffin Writing Fellow at the Nation Institute. Erik Prince refused to speak to me. So they announced there was going to be a memorial service after you made the call to the head of Blackwater, asking for an incident report. He came from a proud family of Republicans; his great-great-uncle, Elihu Root, was once US Secretary of War and the 1912 Nobel Peace Prize-winner. The suit alleges that Blackwater trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown resented Helvenston and deliberately reassigned Helvenston to the team that was ambushed. KATY HELVENSTON: Well, not just at the memorial service. But they had put all of the news stuff in a closet, and I pulled it out, and I got the names of the other three families. According to Callahan, there was a safer alternative route that went around the city, which the men were unaware of because of Blackwaters failure to conduct a risk assessment before the trip, as mandated by the contract. units for the United States, which doesnt do a lot of good over there. Theyre angrytheyre saying, Let me go over,' Blackwater spokesman Chris Bertelli told the Virginian-Pilot ten days after the killings, adding that applications to work for Blackwater had increased considerably in that time. I didnt want to watch it. And so, corporate America is primarily concerned with their bottom line. AMY GOODMAN: And so, were you able to talk out of the presence of the guards? }); In the Oval Office the killings were taken as a challenge to Americas resolve, according to the Los Angeles Times. As we expose Blackwater in this case, it will also expose the inefficient and corrupt system that exists over there.. Now, imagine that every person in that small town in America has guns and is running around with weapons. A new firefighter goes through the academy, is shown all these big hook-and-ladder trucks and pumpers and engines, all this equipment, and then is told to run into a burning building where a family is inside, but is given nothing other than a squirt gun. I would support them in any way I could, but they had to figure out how to get through college. With regard to the wrongful death of these four men, that face is Justin McQuown of Blackwater. The company refused to comment on the case, but McQuowns lawyer, William Crenshaw, told The Nation there are numerous serious factual errors in the lawsuit, saying, On behalf of Mr. McQuown, we extend our sincerest sympathies to the families of the deceased. What happened that day, as far as you have been able to understand and as your lawsuit alleges? The suit alleges that Blackwater trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown resented Helvenston and deliberately reassigned Helvenston to the team that was ambushed. They will be accountable., Still, Blackwater has friends in high places. And I think there were ten in all. JUAN GONZALEZ: Now, even in the training period at Blackwater, he began to find problems in terms of the quality of the training that was going on? Im gonna take care of you. You know, just stuff like that, which obviously wasnt true. But instead, they missed that turnoff, and they ended up driving straight through the center of Fallujah, and it was as they got through the middle of town that they got stuck in traffic, that they were ultimately ambushed. Beast, he was the only contestant to defeat the beast, outmaneuvering a chimpanzee in an obstacle course. As it turned out, Helvenston was slated to carry out a far less glamorous task. KATY HELVENSTON: In the rooms on the balcony, because we had gotten so paranoid, we thought maybe the rooms were tapped or something. However, when youre talking about an assumption of the risk, youre talking about a calculated assumption of risk. He spent 12 years in the Navy SEALs until he left in 1994 as an E-6 (Quartermaster First Class).Helvenston began training at Blackwater USA's facilities in March 2004, and developed a personal conflict with head trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown. One point that I want to make, though, that I think is important is Katy Helvenston talks about the way that Erik Prince and others from Blackwater have dealt with these families. But I can imagine that there may be other lawsuits to follow if these companies dont shape up and actually realize what theyre dealing with here. The suit alleges that the four men should have had a chance to gather intelligence and familiarize themselves with the dangerous routes they would be traveling. More than 428 private contractors have been killed to date in Iraq, and US taxpayers are footing almost the entire compensation bill to their families. And I think that, you know, when we talk about Iraq corruption, a lot of times its Halliburton overcharged for this or Bechtel did this. units, but Blackwater didnt provide them with the maps to go in the G.P.S. Please give today. In fact, Blackwaters then-general counsel, Steve Capace, gave a workshop last May on the subject to an International Super-Conference for contractors. This is viewer supported news. The suit alleges that Blackwater trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown resented Helvenston and deliberately reassigned Helvenston to the team that was ambushed. Marc Miles, why is this lawsuit groundbreaking? It was about what happened to Scotty and Jerry and Mike and Wesley. Thats why this case is being watched so closely by other firms operating in Iraq. On April 17, President Bush spoke at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. STUDENT: My question is in regards to private military contractors. At our rooms. A Blackwater official later boasted, the suit says, that they saved two lives by not sending all six men.