Helvenston began training at Blackwater USA's facilities in March 2004, and developed a personal conflict with head trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown. Username. Helvenston v. Blackwater Security - Wikipedia But today, Blackwater is facing a potentially devastating battlethis time not in Iraq but in court. When less business is being done, and you have more time on your hands, we wanted to bring something positive to your . Katy Helvenstons son Scott Helvenston is one of the four men who died, the security contractors working for Blackwater on March 31, 2004 in Fallujah. Blackwater has fought to have the case dismissed by claiming that all liability lies not with the company but the U.S. government. KATY HELVENSTON: I was appalled at first that he would joke about such a serious issue. As always, click on the title of the post above. On occasion, Helvenston would attempt to politely assist McQuown by offering his expertise on the correct manner of the particular training exercise. Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License, Fighting in Sudan Persists Despite Extended Ceasefires as U.N. Tell us about your family, why he went into the military, and then what you understand about what he understood about the mission he went out on on March 31. But their personal contracts also warned of death and/or injury caused by everything from civil uprising and terrorist activity to poisoning and flying debris. In filing its motion to dismiss the lawsuit, Blackwater quoted from its standard contract, insisting that those who sign it fully appreciate the dangers and voluntarily assume these risks as well as any other risks in any way (whether directly or indirectly) connected to the Engagement.. Well, he was a Navy Seal for about 12 years, and he resigned from the Navy, and times got tough. Youre out of your mind. They had some rocks that they had kind of shaved off, and they had the name of each one of the men. In honor of Public Media Giving Days, a generous donor will DOUBLE your donation, which means itll go twice as far to support our independent journalism. Kathy Potter told the News and Observer that Regency would quote ESS a price, say $1,500 per man per day, and then tell Blackwater that it had quoted ESS $1,200. ESS then contracted with Halliburton subsidiary KBR, which in turn billed the government an unknown amount of money for the same security services, according to the paper. Thats the only thing they understand, she says. trucks from a city of Taji to an army base, which is on the west side of Fallujah. Helvenston began training at Blackwater USA's facilities in March 2004, and developed a personal conflict with head trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown. AMY GOODMAN: Each of you in separate hotels? Im driven and Im not going to quit. Without a detailed map, they took the most direct route, through the center of Falluja. They were escorting three empty trucks on their way to pick up some kitchen equipment at a base west of Fallujah. And we welcome you all to Democracy Now! You may unsubscribe or adjust your preferences at any time. Its Departing Leader Recalls the Battle. His mother says he took the job with Blackwater because the company offered short-term, two-month contracts, and Scott viewed it as an opportunity to turn his life around. AMY GOODMAN: What did he think he was going to be doing? -Amy Goodman. And I do want to say we invited Blackwater on the program today. He wouldnt accept anything but the very best, and he became a Navy Seal, and he considered that the best. Im going to call the secretary and say you brought up a very valid question, and what are we doing about it? Helvenston began training at Blackwater USA's facilities in March 2004, and developed a personal conflict with head trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown. to your inbox each morning. Now, imagine that every person in that small town in America has guns and is running around with weapons. According to the suit, McQuown lacked the credentials of Helvenston and other ex-SEALs. I believe that we should have gone into Afghanistan, but I never believed we should have gone into Iraq, and Scott bought the whole story about Saddam Hussein being involved with Al Qaeda and all that. While it is not unheard of for a successful business to cast its lot entirely with one party, it has clearly paid off. The suit further alleges that McQuown intervened and ordered only a four-man team be sent, although six were available, the other two remaining to perform clerical duties. You can read our Privacy Policy here. This is a billion-dollar industry, Jackson said in October 2004. The producer Paul Howard says Bohm merges, into his [] It was a simple thing, really, that kicked off Suresh's career shift. And, Katy, I know this is difficult for you, and its the first time youre speaking out in a live national broadcast, but I would like to step back for a minute and have you tell us about your son Scott. He spent 12 years in the Navy SEALs until he left in 1994 as an E-6 (Quartermaster First Class).Helvenston began training at Blackwater USA's facilities in March 2004, and developed a personal conflict with head trainer Justin "Shrek" McQuown. Blackwater has fought to have the case dismissed by claiming that all liability lies not with the company but the U.S. government. Iraqis physically did it, and it doesnt get any more horrible than what they did to my son, does it? Katy, of course, can talk about how Scott ended up going there. Justin McQuown is a Director, Engineering at Caretaker Medical based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Thank you so much. They were standing outside our rooms when we got up in the morning. JUAN GONZALEZ: And this is a series of articles about this incident? has denied any relationship to this and wont talk about it anymore. ' Those were some of the last words Helvenston would ever write. And he wrote me back and said, Hi, Jeremy, Im the appropriate person to deal with on this, and he said he would entertain my questions and go over them with counsel. But Blackwater was not aware of that. John Potter had recently teamed Blackwater up with a Kuwaiti business called Regency Hotel and Hospital Company, and together the firms won a security contract with Eurest Support Services (ESS), guarding convoys transporting kitchen equipment to the US military. KATY HELVENSTON: Well, I had been in contact with the Zovkos, primarily out of Cleveland, prior to that. On April 17, President Bush spoke at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Given the uncounted tens of thousands of Iraqis who have died since the invasion and the slaughter in Falluja that followed the Blackwater incident, some might say this lawsuit is just warmongers bickeringno honor among thieves. They say Blackwater refused to redraft the contract. And, Mr. President, how do you propose to bring private military contractors under a system of law? AMY GOODMAN: Were going to talk to Marc Miles and also with Katy Helvenston. A Blackwater official later boasted, the suit says, that they saved two lives by not sending all six men. Justin Shreck. They have no respect for the families. You can read our Privacy Policy here. The suit further alleges that McQuown intervened and ordered only a four-man team be sent, although six were available, the other two remaining to perform clerical duties. Altogether an estimated 20,000 non-Iraqi civilian contractors are now working for the United States inside Iraq. ease arkansas phone number Blackwater, in turn, was billing a Kuwaiti company more than $800 for Scott Helvenstons services, and then that Kuwaiti company, in turn, billed a Cypriot company called E.S.S., which was the company that provides catering services to military operations, basically the U.S. military bases. The four men were, in fact, working under contracts guaranteeing that they would travel with a six-person team. Jeremy, lets begin with you. In one, Man vs. It mostly was, Mom, please dont worry, Im OK. Im gonna be home soon and Im gonna see ya. Thats not what I was hired to do. And at that point McQuown apparently told him that if he didnt do it, he would be fired immediately. So they were easy to pick out. After the killings, Katy Helvenston joined the families of Mike Teague, Jerko Zovko and Wesley Batalona in grieving and in seeking details about the incident. According to former Blackwater officials, Blackwater, Regency and ESS were engaged in a classic war-profiteering scheme. tn_keyword: ['academi', 'security-c'], Helvenston v. Blackwater Security explained And the noon news, it had this just all of a sudden it caught my attention, and I looked over there, and I thought, Oh, my god, you know. It was the event that sparked the U.S. siege of Fallujah, in which hundreds and hundreds of Iraqis were killed, many of them who had nothing to do with this whatsoever women, children, others. And, in fact, the first day that they set out, they were so lost and it was getting late that they ended up staying at an army base on the east side of Fallujah. Would he speak to them? Mr. Rumsfeld . Ill only be away from my kids for a couple of months. Thats why he chose Blackwater, she recalls. Prince has never given a penny to a Democrat. The families of the four men, led by Scott Helvenston's mother Katy Helvenston-Wettengel and Donna Zovko, Jerry Zovko's mother, filed suit against Blackwater with lawyer Daniel . But instead, they missed that turnoff, and they ended up driving straight through the center of Fallujah, and it was as they got through the middle of town that they got stuck in traffic, that they were ultimately ambushed. Blackwater is able to operate over there in Iraq free from any oversight that would typically exist in a civilized society. You need to show intent. Justin McQuown Email & Phone Number - Caretaker.. | ZoomInfo