Issue Position: Ending the War in Iraq - Lawmakers Focus on Misconduct of Private Security Contractors in Iraq

Issue Position

On October 4, 2007, I joined the overwhelming majority of the House in voting for legislation [H.R. 2740] to ensure that all private security contractors working in war zones will be held accountable for any criminal behavior. The measure, which was approved on a vote of 389 to 30, closes a loophole in current law that has resulted in a situation in which thousands of private contractors operate in a legal vacuum with no clear mechanism to hold them accountable for criminal acts.

This issue reached a boiling point in the wake of revelations regarding the conduct of private security guards employed by Blackwater USA who were involved in a shooting incident in which at least eight Iraqi civilians were killed and many others injured. A report by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform revealed that Blackwater employees have been involved in nearly 200 shooting incidents since early 2005.

H.R. 2740 gives U.S. federal courts jurisdiction over the actions by contractors working for any U.S. government agency in areas of foreign countries where U.S. military forces are conducting combat operations.

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