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Team coverageA battle that started in Iraq made its way to a Utah courthouse today. Former security guards for Blackwater Worldwide accused of attacking Iraqi civilians surrendered in Salt Lake City. One of them is a West Valley City man whose mother says the charges against her son are bogus.
Twenty-six-year-old Donald Ball is one of five former Blackwater security guards charged with what prosecutors call "wild, unprovoked gunfire." The former guards are expected to head back to Washington, D.C., next month to face those charges. They stem from this scene at a busy Baghdad intersection 15 months ago.
"The tragic events were shocking and a violation of basic human rights," said Jeff Taylor, a U.S. attorney with the District of Columbia.
Prosecutors say it was an unprovoked attack by the Blackwater guards that left 14 people dead and 20 wounded. "None of the victims of this shooting were armed. None of them were insurgents. Many were shot while inside civilian vehicles that were attempting to flee from the convoy. One victim was shot in the street while standing with his hands up," Taylor said.
But as each defendant turned himself in, all were silent. All five surrendered on 14 counts of manslaughter and dozens of other charges in connection with an investigation into the deadly shooting. A sixth guard pleaded guilty to manslaughter and admitted killing an Iraqi civilian.
Later, it was the attorneys who did the talking, saying the men were under fire.
"Faced with this enemy, these young men were fighting for their lives in a crowded, dangerous and chaotic environment," defense attorney Mark Hulkower said. "These casualties are not the fault of the military or security forces and the five brave young men we represent, but rather they are the fault of the insurgents who use women and children as shields behind which they launch their cowardly attacks."
Donald Ball's mother, Karen Ball, told reporters, "He was caught up in a volatile situation."
Karen says her son's sole purpose for being in the military, and later a security guard, was to protect. "Because he wanted to do something that would make his dad proud and make us proud. He wanted to make a difference in the world," she said.
As a former Marine, Donald did three tours in Baghdad, Ramadi and Fallujah and earned a host of awards for leadership and service. He's expected to graduate from the Police Academy next week. "I'm very proud of him, very proud of him," Karen said.
But today the government called Donald and the four others criminals. Defense attorneys called them heroes.
"In Baghdad they fought for their lives; here they will fight for their freedom," Hulkower said.
Freedom this Utah mom believes won't come free. "Whether he's convicted or not of any wrong doing, he will always have been affected by this," Karen said.
Since turning themselves in this morning, all five have since been released. Though the case has already been assigned to U.S. District Judge Ricardo M. Urbina in Washington, attorneys wanted the case moved to Utah, where they would presumably find a more conservative jury pool and one more likely to support the Iraq war. They said there was no reason for the case to be held in Washington, but a federal magistrate disagreed. Their next court appearance will be in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6.
In addition to Donald Ball, the indicted guards include Dustin Heard, a former Marine from Knoxville, Tenn.; Evan Liberty, a former Marine from Rochester, N.H.; Nick Slatten, a former Army sergeant from Sparta, Tenn.; and Paul Slough, an Army veteran from Keller, Texas.
The sixth guard was identified as Jeremy Ridgeway, who is from California. His sentencing in connection with his plea in the case has not yet been scheduled. [Click here to read factual basis for Ridgeway's guilty plea]
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