Blackwater Probe Reportedly Focuses on 3

Federal prosecutors investigating the shooting deaths of 17 Iraqi civilians have narrowed their focus to as few as three Blackwater Worldwide bodyguards and have given others immunity for cooperating in the case, said people close to the case.

A decision on whether to prosecute the guards, and how many, for the Sept. 16 shooting in Baghdad's Nisoor Square may still be months away. A dozen or more Blackwater guards were on the security detail involved in the shooting. Four of them have testified in the first two weeks of a federal grand jury investigation.

People who discussed the case on the condition of anonymity, because of the sensitive nature of the information, voiced concerns about the fact that Blackwater is paying one law firm to represent as many as 10 guards. The Justice Department tried to get the firm removed from the case but, in a closed-door hearing last week, a federal judge refused the request.

Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell said the company hired the Indianapolis law firm Barnes & Thornburg. Lawyers traveled to Baghdad to meet with guards, some of whom agreed to be represented. One of those lawyers, James Sweeney, has accompanied guards to the closed-door grand jury hearings.

Sweeney, a Marine pilot who helped lead Gulf War combat missions, has experience in military courts but not in federal criminal cases. Sweeney said there is nothing improper about his firm's representation of multiple Blackwater guards.

"Clearly we wouldn't be doing it if there was a problem, both from our standpoint and the standpoint of the court," Sweeney said yesterday. "The flip side is, if you had separate lawyers, would they do anything we aren't?"

At least some of the early grand jury witnesses have been granted immunity from prosecution, an offer extended to a select number of guards to help prosecutors pinpoint which others might be responsible for initiating the shootings.

White-collar lawyer Larry Mackey, another partner in the law firm, was also hired on the case. Mackey is a former federal prosecutor who helped lead the government's case against Timothy J. McVeigh in the Oklahoma City bombing.