Thursday, April 30, 2009
The ugly truth about the CIA’s extraordinary rendition program soon may wind up on trial, now that a controversial civil case has been cleared to proceed. The Ninth Circuit appellate court ruled on Tuesday that five foreign nationals who claim they were kidnapped and tortured by the CIA are entitled to their day in an American court. The ruling disregarded attempts by the Obama administration’s Justice Department to squash the lawsuit by claiming “state secrets” would be revealed if the case was allowed to move forward.
In rejecting the government’s argument, the three-judge panel ruled, “According to the government’s theory, the judiciary should effectively cordon off all secret government actions from judicial scrutiny, immunizing the CIA and its partners from the demands and limits of the law.” They added that although the “state secrets privilege” can be used to challenge specific pieces of evidence, it cannot be used to dismiss an entire lawsuit.
While much of the public discourse on renditions has centered on waterboarding, the civil trial is likely to expose Americans to horrific accounts of other methods employed by CIA agents in the name of national security. Plaintiffs are expected to recount their ordeals at secret “black site” locations in Afghanistan, Morocco and Egypt, where allegedly they were subjected to beatings, electric shocks and laceration by scalpel.
The defendant in the case is Jeppesen Dataplan Inc., a subsidiary of Boeing Co. and CIA contractor, which is accused of helping transport the five men to secret prisons.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Appeals Court Rejects 'State Secrets' Claim, Revives Detainee Suit (by Carrie Johnson, Washington Post)
Court Rebuffs Feds, Reinstates Torture Suit (by Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle)
Suit by 5 Ex-captives of CIA can Proceed, Appeals Panel Rules (by Carol Williams, Los Angeles Times)
Appeals Court Rules Rendition Lawsuit Against Boeing Unit Can Proceed (by William Fisher, Public Record)
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