Sunday, March 30, 2008
Tracy Barkers New Blog
This blog is to keep the public informed on the continuing status of the cases pending. Listen to Tracy's interview on The People's Speak Radio website here.
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Tracy K Barker Halliburton/KBR assault and rape victim
About Me
- Tracy K Barker
- Halliburton/KBR employee assaulted and rape victim falsely imprisoned in living container in Iraq.
Tracy Barker has brought charges against Halliburton/KBR stating that she was sexually assaulted and raped while under their employ and falsely imprisoned in 2004 while working at Camp Hope and in 2005, in Basra. Barker is a military wife and mother of 5 who worked for a Halliburton/KBR subsidiary, in Iraq while her husband served in the US military. Tracy Barker is the only known military dependant that was married to soldier when the assaults took place that has come forward to this day. Tracy states she was sexually harassed and sexually assaulted by a State Department employee and raped by a Halliburton/KBR subsidiary. After these incidents, she said she was confined under orders by her employer to a living container where she was constantly watched including times while she used the bathroom. Food was brought to her as if she was a prisoner and she was denied medical attention and any outside communications. She also claims that when she attempted to leave the camp at one point she was brought to a staging area in the middle of Iraq left with no PPE gear and had to ride in a food truck for 19 dangerous hours through Iraq which took her back to Camp Basra.
Barker was forced several days later to wear the same clothing the night of the assault and paraded through a crowded dining area to see how men reacted as part of the State Departments investigation. At this point she was still be refused medical attention.
Barker was forced several days later to wear the same clothing the night of the assault and paraded through a crowded dining area to see how men reacted as part of the State Departments investigation. At this point she was still be refused medical attention.
Eventually, Tracy was able to use a cellphone of Kevin Rodgers, a National Guard. Tracy’s husband 1st Sergeant Galen Barker then tried to get to Kuwait so that he could rescue his wife from Iraq. However, Tracy continued to be held against her will by Halliburton/KBR and the State Department that continued to stall her release. The morning Tracy was leaving for the United States she was sexually assaulted raped by Halliburton/KBR supervisor. That morning Dr. David Pakkal of the State Department took her immediately to Kuwait to Halliburton Human Resource Department..
RETURNING HOME RECEIVING CALLS FROM GANG RAPE VICTIM AND ASSAULT VICTIMS
Several months after returning home in July of 2005, Tracy started receiving phone calls from other Halliburton employees who also alleged sexual harassment and rape while in Iraq. Barker learned that a State Department investigator and a Halliburton EAP representative had given her home phone number out to gang rape victim Jamie Leigh Jones because they thought Tracy could help her, since she had been the first victim to ever speak out. Barker and husband 1st sergeant helped Jamie Jones by tracking down Jody Schultz duty station with the army who had performed Jones rape kit in Baghdad. Tracy also introduced Jamie Jones to her attorneys who Barker is no longer with and Tracy has new counsel. EEOC determined charges against Halliburton after a 2 year investigation. Barkers case is used as an example with the other cases since Barker was the first to come forward and file these charges publicly. EEOC stated that if Barker's case was taken care of that no other females would've been falsely imprisoned after Tracy.
NO JUSTICE AFTER RETURNING HOME
After returning home, Tracy asked government officials to assist in securing justice. On the civil side, the State Department has not disciplined the State Department official who has admitted to State Department investigators some of the events that Tracy described. Not only does this assailant remained employed with the State Department, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia has refused to seek an indictment against him for his conduct. Rather than terminate the employment of the official, Tracy says that the State Department offered her a payment of $3,500 to drop charges against its employee for the admitted assault. Tracy refused the offer, and continues in her pursuit for justice not only for herself, but for others who have experienced the same or similar treatment while serving our country abroad.
As for her former employer, Halliburton and its subsidiaries requested that Tracy’s case against them be resolved through a arbitration that they contend is required by her employment contract. In private, there is no judge or jury, but the case is decided by an arbitrator selected from a list of arbitrators. Recently, a federal district judge, Judge Miller in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas agreed with Halliburton’s position and granted Halliburton’s Motion to Compel Tracy’s case against her former employer and its subsidiaries to continue proceeding in arbitration. This is presently in the appeals process. Tracy has received no Justice for the assault or rape it has been almost 3 years. Tracy’s attorney, Stewart Hoffer of Houston, Texas, has recently been hired to assist Tracy with the Halliburton case as well as the case pending against the State Department official. The State Departments investigator Lynn Falanga assigned to Tracy's case has not given Tracy any information even after Congressman Bob Ethridge of NC demanded answers to the Attorney General.
THE CONGRESSIONAL HEARING
While Tracy continues her pursuit for justice in her own individual case, Tracy wanted to ensure that her experience, and the experience of others, did not go unnoticed by our elected officials. Accordingly, Tracy was invited to testify before a congressional subcommittee on December 19, 2007 North Carolina’s long time Congressman Bob Etheridge on December 19, 2007. Barker just had twins 2 weeks prior who were in NICU fighting for their lives, Barker was told that by coming to the Congressional hearing she could help other victims. With a 2 hour notice Tracy paid her own way to the hearing and when she arrived Tracy was not allowed to testify at that hearing, but to only provide documentation to the committee, including a sworn statement of Letty Surman, a former Human Resources employee with Halliburton/KBR and who was an eyewitness to some of Tracy's ordeals if you compare Barker's EEOC determination to Surman's affidavit. Surman’s affidavit detailed Tracy’s workplace experience, office, even named one of Barker's perpetrator's.
Tracy Barker’s lawyer, Stewart Hoffer, has first-chaired thirteen trials to verdict in multiple state and federal courts around the country. In addition, Mr. Hoffer has represented numerous other clients in litigation and administrative proceedings in state and federal courts not only in his home state of Texas, but also in Florida, New Mexico, Nevada, Michigan, Nebraska and New York.
As a testament to Mr. Hoffer’s abilities, for five consecutive years since 2003, Mr. Hoffer has been voted by his peers as a “Texas Super Lawyer,” three times for employment litigation and twice for business litigation. Also, in 2004, “H” Texas Magazine twice chose Mr. Hoffer as one of Houston’s top lawyers – once in multiple practice areas and once for business litigation.