ACLU Requested Information on Prisoner Abuses in October

[Selwynn]

ACLU Requested Information on Prisoner Abuses in October; Pentagon Stonewalled, Saying Information Wasn't "Breaking News"

May 13, 2004

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: [e-mail]

WASHINGTON - Documents released today by the American Civil Liberties Union reveal that the Pentagon refused to expedite a Freedom of Information Act request, filed seven months ago, for documents related to the abuse and possible torture of U.S.-held detainees. The Defense Department argued that the material was not "breaking news" and that the failure to expedite the request would not "endanger the life or safety of any individual."

Full compliance with the request, the ACLU said, would have required the Defense Department to release records related to the emerging scandal at Abu Ghraib. It would also have required the release of records describing any measures taken by the Defense Department to prevent torture and abuse.

...

The FOIA request was filed in October 2003 by the ACLU and four other organizations: the Center for Constitutional Rights, Physicians for Human Rights, Veterans for Common Sense, and Veterans for Peace. The requesters are currently considering litigation to force compliance with the seven-month-old request.

...

But, the Pentagon twice rejected the ACLU's call for "expedited processing." The Defense Department claimed that the subject matter of the request was not "breaking news" and that there was no "compelling need" for the immediate release of information about the mistreatment of detainees. The Defense Department also claimed that expediting the request was unnecessary because failure to expedite would not "endanger the life or safety of any individual." The ACLU's complaints about the lack of responsiveness at the Pentagon mirror those of prominent lawmakers.

(more)
http://www.aclu.org/SafeandFree/SafeandFree.cfm?ID=15729&c=206

[Selwynn]

1. Kick for the midnight thread

:kick: