Accused Marine Seen as 'Patriotic, Respectful, Courageous, Self-Sacrificing, Kind and Caring'

"Evan Liberty, a 26-year-old former Marine, is routinely described by friends and family here with the kind of all-American accolades reserved for hometown heroes. Patriotic, respectful, courageous, self-sacrificing, kind, and caring. That's Evan Liberty, they say."

So begins a Boston Globe story about the former Blackwater security guard from New Hampshire who faces federal charges for allegedly killing civilians at Baghdad's Nisoor Square.

The Boston Globe is considered the most liberal big-city newspaper in the country. It is owned by the New York Times.

Liberty's "defenders are reflexively adamant that the scrappy athlete and consummate outdoorsman could not possibly have gunned down innocent people while working for Blackwater Worldwide, the largest private security contractor in Iraq," according to the Globe.

The feds are basing much of their case against Liberty against a former colleague, a turret gunner who copped a plea and admitted to indiscriminately shooting civilians.

"These guys are some of the most highly trained people in the world," said Liberty's father, who told the Globe that his son joined Blackwater as a way to continue serving America after leaving the Marines: "It wasn't for the money. He saw this as a way to serve his country."

As a Marine, Liberty was part of the elite guard that protects US embassies abroad. He served at the US embassies in Cairo and Guatemala City, leaving the service "because another embassy posting was unavailable." He was well suited for diplomatic security. "As an alternative, he joined Blackwater," the Globe reports.

"The whole family is a good American family," Liberty's grandfather says. "Nobody knows what's around the trail. You keep going ahead, and turn the bend, and maybe you'll find out."