Rendition Victims Appeal 2007 Lawsuit Dismissed on Grounds Trial Would Expose State Secrets

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ACLU contends in the appeal that the CIA program is no secret and "the entire world already knows" about it


SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) ― Five men who claim they were tortured in overseas prisons after being sent there by the CIA will ask a U.S. appeals court in San Francisco on Monday to reinstate their lawsuit against a San Jose aviation company.

The lawsuit claims that Jeppesen Dataplan Inc. of San Jose, a subsidiary of Boeing Co., violated international human rights law by knowingly providing flight plans and other logistical support for the CIA plane flights that took them to overseas sites where they were allegedly tortured while being interrogated.

The five men are appealing a ruling in which U.S. District Judge James Ware of San Jose last year dismissed the 2007 lawsuit on the ground that the lawsuit concerned so-called state secrets.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is expected to take the appeal under consideration after hearing arguments and issue a written ruling at a later date.

The dismissal of the lawsuit was sought by the Justice Department under the administration of former President George Bush, which argued that allowing the case to proceed or even confirming or denying the existence of the rendition program could endanger national security.

American Civil Liberties Union lawyers representing the plaintiffs say they hope the administration of President Obama may now change course and drop the state secrets argument so that the case can go to trial.


read: http://cbs5.com/local/overseas.prisons.torture.2.929940.html

[jimshoes]

1. We really should find out who some of these

bad actors were or are rather. It's not much of a secret if everyone knows about it, is it?

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2. It should depend on what the Obama administration (the President) allows

I wonder what bearing the court will give to the fact of the change in administrations?