Judge refuses to ditch lawsuit on harsh CIA interrogations

A federal judge on Friday refused to dismiss a lawsuit against two psychologists who designed the CIA’s harsh interrogation methods used on terror detainees, pushing them closer to a trial that is expected to include secret information.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued James Mitchell and John “Bruce” Jessen on behalf of three former detainees, Gul Rahman, who died in custody, and Suleiman Abdullah Salim and Mohamed Ahmed Ben Soud, who claim they were tortured in CIA prisons in Afghanistan.

Trial is set for June in the lawsuit saying the psychologists’ Spokane, Washington, company contracted with the spy agency to develop interrogation methods such as waterboarding.

The judge’s decision comes as President Donald Trump declared this week that he believes torture works on terror suspects but that he would defer to his defence secretary, retired General James Mattis, who has questioned the effectiveness of practices such as waterboarding, which simulates drowning.

US District Judge Justin Quackenbush rejected arguments that the psychologists acted as agents of the federal government, which could make them immune from lawsuits.

He also ruled that Mitchell and Jessen failed to prove that the former detainees had officially been named as enemy combatants, which would block them from pursuing a claim.