|
Bush May Be Forced to Explain
Destroyed CIA Torture Tapes
John Dean
FindLaw.com
Tuesday December 18, 2007
By my count, there appear to be no less than ten preliminary
investigations underway, following the revelation that the CIA
destroyed at least two sets of videotapes (containing hundreds
of hours of footage) of "advanced interrogation" techniques
being employed in terrorism investigations. In fact, every branch
of government is now involved.
Within the Executive Branch, according to news reports, the CIA's
General Counsel and Inspector General are investigating. The Department
of Justice is investigating. On Capitol Hill, both the Senate
and House Intelligence Committees are investigating. In addition,
the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is inquiring
as to whether the Federal Records Act has been violated. And Senator
Joseph Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee,
has made preliminary inquiries as well.
The Bush Administration has shown that it is not very good at
investigating itself, so no one should hold their breath for the
outcome of either the CIA or Justice Department investigation.
And Attorney General Mukasey has dismissed an independent special
counsel inquiry as very premature. The Democratic-controlled Congress
could get to the bottom of all this, but one should bear in mind
that our elected representatives have yet to get to the bottom
of the political firing of U.S. Attorneys (although, to be fair,
they did get former Attorney General Gonzales to resign). Today,
Congress suffers from a degenerative spinal malady, and while
they can bark, they appear unable to bite.
There are three court orders that may have been violated, but
one in particular strikes me as a very serious problem for the
CIA. Accordingly, we may well be in the unique situation in which
a pending civil lawsuit might flush out some answers, and the
federal judiciary might thus embarrass the other branches into
actually taking meaningful action. I say "might" because
the Bush Administration thinks nothing of stiffing federal court
judges who seek information, and they probably figure they can
tap-dance for the federal judiciary - along with all the other
inquiries -- until they are out of Washington on January 20, 2009.
(Article continues below)
Nevertheless, the situation in the United States District Court
for the Southern District of New York, as a result of Freedom
of Information Act requests by the American Civil Liberties Union,
could well force the Bush Administration's hand. An order holding
the CIA in contempt of court might get the Administration's attention.
The ACLU's Lawsuit, and the Order that the CIA Produce Documents
When word of mistreatment of detainees surfaced, the ACLU filed
a Freedom of Information Act request targeting the CIA and others
on October 7, 2003 and May 25, 2004, seeking records concerning
the treatment of all detainees apprehended after September 11,
2001 and held in U.S. custody abroad. This, of course, would mean
not only in Guantanamo but in the secret prisons in Eastern Europe
operated by the CIA.
Not surprisingly, the government stiffed the request, so the
ACLU filed a lawsuit in June 2004 in the U.S. District Court for
the Southern District of New York. The case ended up in the courtroom
of Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein. On September 15, 2004, Judge Hellerstein
ordered the CIA and other government departments to "produce
or identify" all responsive documents by October 15, 2004.
The CIA claimed that some of the relevant documents were the
subject of an inquiry by the CIA's Office of the Inspector General,
so its attorneys requested a stay of the judge's order and an
extension of time to comply with the request for other documents.
In February 2005, Judge Hellerstein denied the CIA's request for
a stay, but he did not enforce the stay immediately when the CIA
moved for the judge to reconsider his ruling based on additional
evidence from the CIA's Director - as the CIA entered a full-court
press to prevent the ACLU from getting anything.
This stalling action had been playing out, when news of the destruction
of the tapes became public. Now, in the action before Judge Hellerstein,
he ACLU has moved to hold the CIA in contempt of court, based
on the Judge's September 15, 2004 ruling. It is difficult to see
why the CIA is, in fact, not in contempt, given the nature of
the FOIA request and the judge's order.
Full
article here.
|
INFOWARS:
BECAUSE THERE'S A WAR ON FOR YOUR MIND
|
|
