Judge Rules Jose Padilla Can Sue John Yoo in Torture Suit

By Jeralyn, Section Terror Trials
Posted on Sat Jun 13, 2009 at 07:27:34 PM EST
Tags: Jose Padilla, John Yoo (all tags)

Share This: Digg!

U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White in San Francisco yesterday ruled Jose Padilla can sue former Bush terror policy maker John Yoo.

Mr. Padilla was held as an “enemy combatant” in solitary confinement for more than three years in the Navy brig in Charleston, S.C. Mr. Padilla, who was convicted of supporting terrorism and other crimes, demands that Mr. Yoo be held accountable for actions that Mr. Padilla claims led to his being tortured.

....In the 42-page ruling, Judge Jeffrey S. White of Federal District Court in San Francisco characterized the conflict as one that embodies the tension “between the requirements of war and the defense of the very freedoms that war seeks to protect.”

Judge White refused all but one of Yoo's immunity claims, finding "Yoo set in motion a series of events that resulted in the deprivation of Padilla’s constitutional rights.”

< Does Health Care Reform Need To Be "Bipartisan?" | Sunday Morning News and Open Thread >

Legal

Nothing on this site should be construed as legal advice. TalkLeft does not give legal advice.

TalkLeft is not responsible for and often disagrees with material posted in the comments section. Read at your own risk.

Judge Rules Jose Padilla Can Sue John Yoo in Torture Suit | 24 comments (24 topical)

Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment

Heh (4.75 / 4) (#1)
by Steve M on Sat Jun 13, 2009 at 08:16:54 PM EST

Niiiiiice. One guess who appointed this judge!

ninth circut often overturned (none / 0) (#2)
by diogenes on Sat Jun 13, 2009 at 09:18:26 PM EST

Isn't the ninth circuit famous for making liberal rulings which are overturned on appeal to the SCOTUS?


: Kinda sorta (5.00 / 1) (#6)
by Steve M on Sat Jun 13, 2009 at 10:29:37 PM EST

This is not the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, though, it is one district court judge from within the Ninth Circuit - and a Bush II appointee, as fate would have it.
Overall the Ninth Circuit actually has a reveral rate no worse than average, but I recall there was one recent year where they were reversed a ton and that sorta became a talking point.

: No, and No (5.00 / 1) (#7)
by Peter G on Sat Jun 13, 2009 at 10:34:16 PM EST

This new ruling, as stated in the post, is by a U.S. district judge (trial level) -- a GWB-appointed, conservative ex-prosecutor and big-firm corporate lawyer, by the way -- not by the Ninth Circuit (appeals level) court. The Ninth Circuit has a very large membership (twice the size of any other Circuit) which is relatively diverse, politically speaking, considering they're all federal judges. Some of the panels of the Ninth Circuit have rendered decisions labeled "liberal" by arch-conservatives, and some of those have been overturned by our present ultra-conservative Supreme Court. I wouldn't draw any inferences from that about which decisions were more likely correct, which is what you seem to be implying, Dio.

: Yes (none / 0) (#17)
by NMvoiceofreason on Sun Jun 14, 2009 at 11:13:42 AM EST

and Jay Bybee is one of those who has had basically everything he's ever written reversed. But I dont think I'd call him a liberal.

I'm sure someone in the Obama DOJ (4.50 / 2) (