Feral Jundi

Friday, July 8, 2011

Legal News: Federal Jury– Jamie Leigh Jones Was Not Raped, And KBR Did Not Commit Fraud

Filed under: Legal News — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 2:54 PM

This is a stunning verdict, in a week of amazing legal news.(to include that Casey Anthony case) Thanks to a reader for sending me this news, and I also want to openly apologize to KBR and to those men who were labeled as rapists by this women. My commentary was only based on the given information, and at the end of the day, what matters most is the facts.

This jury was given all of the available information and have made their choice. And honestly, after reading what was posted in that Mother Jones article, I can see why they made their choice.

As to my thoughts on the whole case? I have heard about this kind of thing in the federal government, the military, and in private industry and it is most unfortunate. And usually the way it goes down is that a gal gets drunk, sleeps with a guy they work with, then has regrets in the morning about sleeping with that guy. Then the rumors that get spread about what happened are what fuel the anger of those that had regret. So the temptation of lashing out by crying rape in order to save face is there.

I know it sounds pretty immature, but these things happen in the real world. And these things happen in war zones as well. Probably the two things that get male contractors in the most trouble overseas is ‘booze and women’. The best solution for contracting survival is to not drink while over there, and to avoid relationships (if you can).

Especially for security contractors, because A. you carry a gun and B. you must not be distracted or influenced. Remember the whole ‘Mission, the Men, and Me” concept? Well, when you start putting your relationships ahead of the mission (contract) or the men, then your start opening yourself up to all sorts of problems. Now of course the risks are lower when relationships are with individuals from ‘other’ companies and contracts on a FOB or something. But if you have relations with your client(s) on your particular contract, or within your company, then that is a big red flag. Keep it professional, and focus on the mission and contract.

Now I also want to go back to the real sexual assault cases out there. The ones where women were truly assaulted, and all of the evidence and circumstance pointed towards that. I certainly hope that this particular case does not hurt your case.

This case is also a cautionary tale for those women who have decided to use rape as a means to hurt some guy that you had consensual sex with, all because you had regrets about the whole affair in the morning or sometime later. There is a difference here between being raped/sexually assaulted, or having regrets because of personal choice. It is called being accountable for your actions, and if that is what you chose to do, then you need to live with it and move on.

A female victim has a lot of power when they scream rape, because it symbolizes such a shocking and tragic crime. But those same female victims lose that power when those ‘less than honorable women out there’ scream rape and use it as a malicious tool and legal weapon. KBR’s image suffered under this assault, and the accused men suffered under this assault–and both are a prime example of the power of this kind of thing. My support goes to those women who were truly victims, and I only hope that this case does not hurt your pursuit of justice or your desire to step forward and say something. –Matt

Federal jury: No rape, no fraud in KBR case
July 8, 2011
A federal jury on Friday ruled that a woman who sued KBR over an alleged sexual assault in Iraq was not raped, and the company did not commit fraud.
Jamie Leigh Jones sued KBR, its Houston-based former parent company Halliburton and KBR firefighter Charles Bortz, who she claimed led an attack on her while she worked for KBR at Camp Hope in Baghdad in 2005.
Jones’ attorney, Ron Estefan, told jurors during closing arguments that KBR had neglected to enforce its policies against sexual harassment by its contract workers in Iraq, which facilitated Jones’ rape.
Estefan asked the jury to award his client as much as 5 percent of KBR’s net worth in actual or punitive damages, which would have been more than $114 million.

(more…)

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Legal News: Why Jamie Leigh Jones Could Lose Her KBR Rape Case

Filed under: Legal News — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 10:03 AM

“Oftentimes the truth is in between,” says Laurie Levenson, a former federal prosecutor in Los Angeles. “The truth may be that this wasn’t rape as we come to understand it in the law, but it wasn’t something that was appropriate. It doesn’t mean that something didn’t happen.” However, if Jones hasn’t been entirely truthful and the jury rules against her, it could be a major setback for sexual assault victims, particularly women serving in war zones. “The problem with cases like this is, if it turns out that she’s making it up, it really does a disservice to the many women who really are raped who have trouble coming forward,” Levenson says.

Thanks to a reader for sending me this. Boy, the details in the court records below paint a vastly different picture than what Jamie was claiming. Although it is important to remember that the attorneys will do everything they can to discredit the victim so as to influence the jury’s decision. So I will hold any commentary and let the reader decide for themselves.

As to my post about her case, all I can say is that my commentary was based upon the given information at that time. Likewise, as much as I despise sexual crimes, I equally despise those who ‘lie’ about being a victim of sexual crime in order to seek financial gain, celebrity or to attack a company. This is not to say that this was the intended goal here, but these things do happen.  If this was a scheme, then the real victims would be KBR and the man (or men) accused of rape.

The other thing that a case like this will hurt, if it was determined to be a lie, are the future cases of women who were truly the victims of sexual assault in war zones. We will see and the court will decide on this deal. Either way, this article definitely paints a different picture than has been previously presented before. It was also published in Mother Jones, which is certainly not a ‘friend’ of KBR, which gives this article even greater significance. Check it out. –Matt

Why Jamie Leigh Jones Could Lose Her KBR Rape Case
Her story of a brutal attack in Iraq sparked a national outcry—but how much of it is true?
By Stephanie Mencimer
Thu Jul. 7, 2011
The allegations were explosive when they first hit in 2007: A 20-year-old woman named Jamie Leigh Jones alleged that four days after going to work in Iraq for contracting giant KBR in July 2005, she was drugged and gang-raped [1] by fellow contractors. She accused the company, then a subsidiary of Halliburton, of imprisoning her in a shipping container after she reported the rape, and suggested KBR had tampered with some of the medical evidence that had been collected at an Army hospital. The harrowing story has made international headlines. It’s been the subject of congressional hearings and has inspired legislation. Jones even plays a starring role in the new documentary Hot Coffee [2], about efforts to limit access to the justice system.
Jones’ charges fell on fertile ground, compounding KBR’s reputation as a corporate scofflaw—all the more so when it came out that the firm’s contract had included a mandatory arbitration clause [3] intended to block employees from suing it. Jones spent years fighting for a jury trial, and now, six years after the alleged attack, she is finally getting her day in court in a civil suit that accuses KBR of knowingly sending her into a hostile workplace. The verdict could come as early as Thursday. And—in a twist that’s likely to shock her numerous supporters—there’s a good chance she will lose.

(more…)

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Haiti: Women, Girls Rape Victims In Haiti Quake Aftermath

   Thanks to Matt for sending me this.  I find it disgusting that we are still talking about a lack of security in Haiti. Especially when there are plenty of security resources to call upon in the U.S. and world.  What are they doing with all the millions of dollars raised for the relief effort is my question? If there is a security need, then pay the money, and get some boots on the ground to do the job right.

   Oh, and here we see the U.N. is again failing at their basic task of protecting people.  If they can’t do the job, then they need to step aside and let a competent PSC/PMC do the job. Time is of the essence and if we cannot depend upon the U.N. to do the job, then it would make more sense to privatize the security.  At least until the police have been rejuvenated and all of those prisoners have been rounded up and captured.

   The other point to focus in on, is those thousands of escaped criminals along with the fact that hundreds of women have lost husbands/fathers/boyfriends to the quake, along with a damaged police force and infrastructure, has all created the perfect storm for this kind of crime to occur. Defenseless women with thousands of criminals roving the country, equals a rise in sex crimes. Nor can you lock up a tent or sleeping pad in a relief camp, to keep the bad guys out. Does anyone else see this as a serious problem?  Man oh mighty.

   Meanwhile, the media is crying about my industry wanting to get in there and provide those security services. I guess the media would prefer the world just stands by on the sidelines and let it happen. Or have all that money raised for the effort just sit in the banks so aid agencies can collect on the interest. Time is ticking away, and the women and people of Haiti need real security and not just talk. –Matt

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Women, girls rape victims in Haiti quake aftermath

By MICHELLE FAUL

Tue Mar 16, 2010

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – When the young woman needed to use the toilet, she went out into the darkened tent camp and was attacked by three men.

“They grabbed me, put their hands over my mouth and then the three of them took turns,” the slender 21-year-old said, wriggling with discomfort as she nursed her baby girl, born three days before Haiti’s devastating quake.

“I am so ashamed. We’re scared people will find out and shun us,” said the woman, who suffers from abdominal pain and itching, likely from an infection contracted during the attack.

(more…)

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Industry Talk: Pentagon To Track Assault Of Contractor Employees

Filed under: Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 12:27 PM

   Excellent, but my question is what took you guys so long?  This war has been cranking along for over 8 years now, and  the government is finally tracking this stuff or caring? And what about tracking contractor deaths, or do you guys care about that? The machine of progress in government can be mind numbingly slow or even absent. I guess we should be thankful for whatever they can accomplish, but how long does it really take to apply some common sense policies? pffffft

   The next step though, is to actually act on that information that you get.  What will really impress me, is if the government gives the same attention, to third country nationals working for us, as they do to expats.  When a Ugandan guard is raped, or some Filipina working at the DEFAC is assaulted, is the DoD going to care about that and hold companies accountable for how they handle those incidents? Or do we only care about U.S. contractors? I guess local nationals would fall under the laws of their country, but is there any responsibility to report that stuff too?

    Who knows, and maybe we do track and care about all of these folks.  It would be the least we could do for the service that all of these contractors have given to the war effort. –Matt

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Pentagon to track assault of contractor employees

By KIMBERLY HEFLINGFriday, February 12, 2010

WASHINGTON — The sexual assault of employees of U.S. military contractors working in Iraq and Afghanistan will be tracked by the Pentagon under a system it is setting up.

The tracking will likely begin this year, Defense official Gail McGinn said in a memo to the Pentagon’s Inspector General included in a report released Friday.

The IG evaluation was initiated by a request from congressional members concerned that not enough protections were offered to U.S. contracting employees assaulted in the war zones. One of the most high profile cases was that of a Texas woman, J. L. Jones. Jones has sued Halliburton Co. and its former subsidiary KBR, saying she was gang raped while working for KBR in Iraq in 2005.

The IG also recommended the Pentagon develop plans to provide immediate help following assaults on contractor employees, which McGinn also said the Pentagon was developing plans to do.

The IG noted it found anecdotal evidence that contractors who reported being assaulted received medical and other assistance from military personnel.

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