Four former Blackwater security guards were found guilty Wednesday in the 2007 shootings of unarmed Iraqis.
Originally hired for extra security for American diplomats around Afghanistan, the Blackwater USA private security guards killed 14 Iraqis and injured 18 more in Baghdad on Sept. 16, 2007.
Nicholas Slatten was found guilty of first-degree murder. The three other guards — Paul Slough, Evan Liberty and Dustin Heard — were found guilty of multiple counts of voluntary manslaughter, attempted manslaughter and gun chargers.
After an 11-week trial and weeks of jury deliberation, the defense was stunned with the outcome. “The verdict is wrong. It’s incomprehensible. We’re devastated,” said Heard’s layer, according to the Wall Street Journal. “We’re going to fight it every step of the way. We still think we’re going to win.”
A federal judge ordered the four immediately to jail.
The guards argued self-defense against an incoming attack, while prosecution argued there was no incoming gunfire and the shootings by the men were unprovoked.
None of the victims in the shooting was an insurgent.
“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 C. Machen Jr., whose office prosecuted the case.
