Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Arbitration and the Violent Criminal Act

Another non-IP post, but this is so important I just want to put my thoughts down.

The Senate voted for the Franken Amendment to the Appropriations Bill.
That amendment prohibits funding going to a government contractor who uses contracts to interfere with a crime victim's right to seek redress in the courts.

Jamie Leigh Jones was the brave woman who made the story of her own rape and brutalization and false imprisonment by her co-workers so very very public.
She stood beside Senator Franken as he presented his amendment and as the voice vote was taken.
Ms. Jones was raped several times by coworkers, vaginally and anally then locked in a shipping crate for days. She finally persuaded one of her guards to let her have a phone, which she used to call her dad. Dad called his Congressman and they went to work rescuing an American captive in Iraq. Somehow this didn't make as much news as rescuing soldiers captured in Iraq; probably because she was captured by her own employer.

I don't do criminal law and don't know much at all about criminal law as it relates to actions outside the US by US entities toward other US entities (or citizens). The articles say there's some loophole that makes it virtually impossible to prosecute an American who commits a crime overseas, even if the victim is another American. That needs to be stopped, but in the short term at least we can stop paying for it.

As their website says: "When you become part of the KBR team, your opportunities are endless." For instance, the opportunity to be gang-raped and stuffed in a box for days. No thanks.

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