US JUDGE: Iraqi Torture Victims & Relatives CAN PROCEED With Lawsuit Against Contractors

US judge: contractor can face Iraqi torture suit


REUTERS
Reuters North American News Service

Nov 06, 2007 17:35 EST

WASHINGTON(Reuters) - Iraqi torture victims and their relatives can proceed with a lawsuit against a defense contractor that provided interrogators to the U.S. military in Iraq, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.

The lawsuit was filed in 2004 on behalf of Iraqi nationals who say they or their relatives had been tortured or mistreated while detained by the U.S. military at Abu Ghraib and other prisons in Iraq.

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U.S. District Judge James Robertson dismissed the claims against Titan because the translators performed their duties under the direct command and under the exclusive operational control of military personnel.

But he ruled the lawsuit against CACI can go forward. He said CACI interrogators were subject to a dual chain of command involving company and military officials, with significant independent authority retained by CACI supervisors in Iraq.

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