CIA psychologist contractors sued by torture survivors

For the first time since the much maligned practice of torture in such infamous detention centers as Guantanamo Bay, Bagram Airfield and Abu Gharib has been brought to the public eye, two CIA psychologist contractors are going to court.

Psychologists James Mitchell and Bruce Jessen, who designed the torture methods used by the CIA, are trying to get the judge to throw out the lawsuit filed in behalf of some of the men who suffered the ordeal, reported Al Jazeera.

However, senior federal judge Justin L Quackenbush refused to dismiss the case saying, "I cannot summarily dismiss the complaint plaintiffs have filed. It's thorough to say the least. On its face, the complaint alleges not only aiding and abetting but participation and complicity in the administration of this enhanced interrogation program."

According to the 2014 US Senate Intelligence Committee report, Mitchell and Jessen were paid $81M to teach the CIA how to break the detainees during questioning. Both psychologists had no experience in interrogation, said World Bulletin. The same report dubbed the program "brutal", "physically harmful", and "not effective".

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed the suit against Mitchell and Jessen in behalf of torture survivors Suleiman Abdullah Salim, Mohammed Ahmed Ben Soud as well as the estate of Gul Rahman, who froze to death in a CIA black site in Afghanistan. The suit, seeking compensatory damages of $75,000, was filed Tuesday in a federal court in Washington state where Mitchell and Jessen reside. 

The suit calls the torture program a "joint criminal enterprise" and a "war crime" in which the CIA and the contractors colluded, and from which Mitchell and Jessen  profited financially, said the Guardian.

Although the veneer of secrecy around the torture program has been pierced by many government investigations, none of the architects have been brought to court. As an example, a Justice Department inquiry ended in 2012 without prosecutions. The new lawsuit aims to end the trend by charging not government officials but contractors.

Tags

torture, CIA, psychologist contractors, ACLU

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