Report: Blackwater Killings Unjustified

Federal agents have found that the killings of at least 14 of the 17 Iraqi civilians shot by Blackwater Worldwide security personnel in a September confrontation were unjustified and violated rules of deadly force, The New York Times reported.

Citing civilian and military officials briefed on the case, the Times reported on its Web site Tuesday night that the Justice Department was already reviewing the findings even though the FBI was still investigating the shootings in Baghdad on Sept. 16.

The findings contradict Blackwater claims the guards fired in self defense and are consistent with earlier investigations by the Iraqis and the U.S. military, reports CBS News national security correspondent David Martin. Whether the findings lead to criminal charges is another matter.

Former military prosecutor Gary Solis says loopholes in the law and a delay in the FBI investigation weaken the case against Blackwater.

"If you arrive on a crime scene two weeks after the event in a public area that is heavily trafficked, essentially your evidence is destroyed and you're going to have to go with what's second best," Solis told Martin.

State Department officials have said it has offered limited immunity to private security contractors involved in shootings in Iraq. They disagreed with law enforcement officials that such actions could jeopardize prosecutions in the Sept. 16 incident.

Rep. David E. Price, D-N.,C., has sponsored legislation to apply U.S. criminal law to contractors serving overseas and called for the Justice Department to hold someone accountable for the shootings.

Paul Cox, a spokesman for Price, said late Tuesday that "we don't have any independent verification of this. I don't have any access to the report." But he said if the FBI concludes there was criminal wrongdoing, "just because there are deficiencies in the law, and Congressman Price is trying to rectify that, that's no excuse not to prosecute."

The FBI has concluded that three of the deaths may have been justified under rules that allow lethal force in response to an imminent threat, the Times reported.

Investigators have concluded that as many as five of the company's guards opened fire during the shootings, the newspaper reported. One guard has become the focus of the investigation, the Times reported, because that guard was responsible for several deaths.

A government official familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press on Tuesday night that no conclusions have been reached about any of the fatalities. A State Department official said he was not aware that the department had been informed of any findings. Both requested anonymity because the investigation is still under way.

The shootings took place in Baghdad's Nisoor Square. Blackwater contends that its convoy was attacked before it opened fire, but the Iraqi government's investigation concluded that the shootings were unprovoked.

According to State Department guidelines, all employees and contractors, may use lethal force "only in response to an imminent threat of deadly force or serious physical injury against the individual, those under the protection of the individual or other individuals," the Times reports.

Anne Tyrrell, a Blackwater Worldwide spokeswoman, said the company supports "stringent accountability" for any wrongdoing.

"If it is determined that one person was complicit in the wrongdoing, we would support accountability in that," said Tyrrell. "The key people in this have not spoken with investigators."

She added that the company will withhold further comment "until the findings are made available."

"Without a doubt, the teams were faced with deadly force that day," she said.