Guards surrender in Salt Lake

As they walked into the federal courthouse here in downtown Salt Lake City, a heckler across the street shouted: "Baby killers!"

But the five men working for private security contractor Blackwater Worldwide appeared stone-faced, saying nothing as they surrendered to federal authorities here. The men are facing a 35-count indictment accusing them of killing 14 unarmed Iraqis and wounding 20 others on a crowded Baghdad street in September 2007.

The men were indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., but surrendered here on Monday in an attempt to get the case moved to what their attorneys believe is friendlier territory. It is also the home state of one of the indicted men — Donald Ball of West Valley City. After a two-hour hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul Warner ordered the men to appear in court Jan. 6 in the nation's capital.

"We'll argue it should move back to Utah," defense attorney Paul Cassell told the Deseret News outside of court.

The men are charged with voluntary manslaughter, attempted manslaughter and weapons violations. If convicted, they face mandatory 30-year prison terms. Indicted are:

• Ball, 26, a former Marine from West Valley City.

• Nicholas Abram Slatten, 24, a former Army sergeant from Sparta, Tenn.

• Paul Alvin Slough, 29, of Keller, Texas, who served in the Army.

• Dustin Laurent Heard, 27, a former Marine from Knoxville, Tenn.

• Evan Shawn Liberty, 26, a former Marine from Rochester, N.H.

Another man, Jeremy P. Ridgeway, 35, of California, struck a plea

deal with Justice Department prosecutors in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 5 to charges of voluntary manslaughter and attempt to commit manslaughter in the death of an Iraqi. He has not yet been sentenced.

The men are accused of opening fire on a crowd of people at an intersection in Baghdad. Witnesses say the shooting was unprovoked, and innocent men, women and children died.

"While there were dangers in Baghdad in September 2007, there were also ordinary people going about their lives, performing mundane daily tasks, like making their way through a crowded traffic circle," Pat Rowan, assistant attorney general for national security, said Monday.