Judge Appears Reluctant To Investigate Destruction of CIA Tapes

December 21, 2007 · Filed Under Legal News, U.S. News

Much to the bitter disappointment of left-wing types, U.S. District Judge Henry H. Kennedy appeared reluctant today to open his own investigation into the destruction of interrogation tapes by the CIA.

U.S. District Judge Henry H. Kennedy heard arguments from both sides on whether he should hold a hearing on the CIA’s controversial destruction of the videotapes in November 2005, five months after he had issued an order specifically ordering the government to preserve “all evidence and information regarding the torture, mistreatment and abuse of detainees now” at the U.S. military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Lawyer Joseph “Jody” Hunt, representing the White House, told the judge that Zubaydah and al-Nashiri were not being held at Guantanamo when the judge issued his order, noting that President Bush announced their transfer to the facility in September 2006. He also said the tapes destroyed by the CIA had no bearing on the case of the Yemeni men because, “It is inconceivable that the destroyed tapes could have been about abuse, mistreatment or torture of detainees at Guantanamo Bay.”

And Hunt asked the judge to refrain from conducting his own investigation because the Justice Department and CIA inspector general are already looking into the controversy, including whether the government violated any court orders to preserve evidence. He said that the Justice Department and the administration would notify the judge if the inquiry concludes that the court order was violated.

Judge Kennedy did not say when he would officially rule on these issues, but observers believe he will ultimately allow the Justice Department to conduct their own investigations without interfering.