Civilian Contractor Killed by US troops

February 12, 2007
Civilian Contractor Killed by US troops

DETROIT - Several investigations have been launched into why a civilian contractor in Iraq was shot and killed by American troops as he drove toward a U.S. military checkpoint last week.

Greenfelder said a KBR representative visited Tolfree's daughter, Kristen Martin, 22, of Owosso, Feb. 6 to deliver the news. The representative initially said Tolfree and another convoy driver were killed by a roadside bomb.

Later that day, the representative phoned Martin and said Tolfree was killed by U.S. forces, Greenfelder said. She later learned from news reports that the other driver had survived.

770 civilian contractors died in Iraq

January 29, 2007
770 civilian contractors died in Iraq

Laboring in a war with no discernible front line, more than 770 civilian contractors have died in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion began in March 2003.

Statistics kept by the Labor Department indicate fatalities among civilian contractors working for American firms escalated rapidly late last year, with at least 301 dying in Iraq in 2006 -- including 124 in the final three months.