Attorney General Jeff Jackson and bipartisan attorneys general support veteran wounded in Afghanistan
RALEIGH – Attorney General Jeff Jackson and a bipartisan group of 20 attorneys general filed a brief with the Supreme Court of the United States in support of a veteran who was wounded in Afghanistan as a result of a private contractor’s negligence. The veteran is now fighting to hold the contractor accountable. This case is particularly relevant for North Carolina, which has the fourth largest active-duty military population in the nation.
“If private companies act negligently and endanger our service members, then those companies should be held responsible,” said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. “I urge the Supreme Court to allow this service member’s case to move forward.”
Fluor Corporation, a military contractor, hired Ahmad Nayeb in 2011 to work at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. According to a lawsuit filed by veteran Winston Hencely, Fluor failed to properly supervise Nayeb and Nayeb used parts from a vehicle yard to make a suicide bomb vest. Nayeb then detonated the suicide bomb at another part of a base where Hencely and others were gathered for a Veterans Day 5K run. The explosion killed five people and injured 16, including Hencely.
Hencely sued Fluor in South Carolina for negligent hiring and supervision. Lower courts dismissed the case, ruling that private federal contractors—just like the federal government—should be protected from lawsuits arising out of military combatant activities during wartime.
The attorneys general argue in their brief that the lower courts effectively rewrote federal law by extending protections that Congress specifically chose not to give to private contractors. This undermines states’ traditional authority to hold wrongdoers accountable and compensate victims through their tort laws.
If allowed to stand, this ruling could shield private military contractors from accountability nationwide, potentially leaving injured service members and civilians with no legal recourse when contractors act negligently.
The coalition is asking the Supreme Court to reverse the lower court’s decision and allow Hencely’s lawsuit against Fluor to move forward.
Attorney General Jackson is joined in filing this brief by the Attorneys General of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and West Virginia.
A copy of the brief is here.
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