Private Military Contractors & (and) Justice: A Look at the Industry, Blackwater, & (and) the Fallujah Incident
![handle is hein.journals/regjil4 and id is 135 raw text is: PRIVATE MILITARY CONTRACTORS & JUSTICE: A
LOOK AT THE INDUSTRY, BLACKWATER, & THE
FALLUJAH INCIDENT
J.T. Mlinarcik*
In late March of 2004, four U.S. civilians were brutally murdered
while working in Iraq. The men were beaten, torched, shot and two of
the bodies were hung from a bridge over the Euphrates River.1 The
men were part of a large U.S. contingent of private contractors who
were hired to help the rebuilding efforts in Iraq.2 Since their deaths,
little has been done to seek justice under either Iraqi or U.S. law.3
In light of this event and others like it, this note is written to exam-
ine the private defense contractor industry, the increased U.S. military
dependence upon non-military personnel, and the potential avenues
private contractors may have for legal protection. This note will ex-
plore options for prosecution and justice for the U.S. civilians killed in
Iraq and seek to determine whether justice is best pursued under U.S.,
Iraqi, or international law?
I. PRIVATE MILITARY FORCES & PRIVATE SECURITY CONTRACTORS
Private military forces appear to have existed nearly as long as
combat itself. The first official recorded use of outside military forces
occurred during King Shulgi of Ur's reign (2094-2047 B.C.).4 Ur is
* J.D. Candidate, Regent University School of Law, 2006; M.B.A, McColl
School of Business, Queens University, 2000; B.A., Furman University, 1998.
1 Neil King Jr. & Greg Jaffe, Killings in Iraq Cast New Cloud Over Rebuild-
ing: Attacks on Civilians Stoke Security Fears Even as U.S. Issues More Work Con-
tracts, WALL ST. J., Apr. 1, 2004, at Al, available at 2004 WL-WSJ 56924713.
2 See Anthony Bianco et al., Outsourcing War: An Inside Look at Brown &
Root, the Kingpin of America's New Military-Industrial Complex, Bus. WK., Sept.
15, 2003, at 68, available at 2003 WL 62195579.
3 Jay Price & Joseph Neff, After the Horror, Strong Words Mask Inaction,
NEWS & OBSERVER, Aug. 1, 2004, at Al, available at 2004 WLNR 17531383 [here-
inafter Price & Neff, After the Horror].
4 P.W. SINGER, CORPORATE WARRIORS: THE RISE OF THE PRIVATIZED
MILITARY INDUSTRY 20 (Robert Art, et al. eds., 2003). Peter W. Singer has a Ph.D.
from Harvard, an undergrad degree from Princeton University and is a Fellow with](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/regjil4&div=10&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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Private Military Contractors & (and) Justice: A Look at the Industry, Blackwater, & (and) the Fallujah Incident
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