Blog of law articles

Just two torture memo dudes, reliving the good times:

A federal jury in Miami convicted Padilla and two others of conspiring to murder, kidnap and maim people in a foreign country, along with two counts of providing material support to terrorists. He was sentenced to 17 years and four months in prison, a lighter sentence than prosecutors had pushed for.

He sued Yoo and various government officials, claiming he suffered abuse and torture during his nearly four-year detention at prisons in South Carolina and New York. He said he endured sleep deprivation, exposure to extreme light and temperatures, threats of physical abuse and torture, denial of adequate medical care, constant surveillance and prolonged isolation.

He claimed Yoo was personally involved in the government's decision to label him an "enemy combatant." He also cited several memos written by Yoo that allegedly justified the deprivation of his constitutional rights. The memos were crafted "with the specific intent of immunizing government officials from criminal liability for participating in practices that Defendant Yoo knew to be unlawful," Padilla claimed.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White denied Yoo's motion for dismissal on all but one claim, saying the complaint "alleges conduct that would be unconstitutional if directed at any detainee."

Yoo filed a notice that he would appeal the decision to the 9th Circuit in San Francisco. Government attorneys also said they were dropping out of the case, and that Yoo would be represented by an unidentified private lawyer.

Let's hope Judge Bybee has the good sense to recuse himself from this one when it reaches the 9th -- not that Bybee has shown a lot of good sense to date.