Jury awards Abu Ghraib detainees $42 million, holds contractor responsible

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia — 

A U.S. assemblage connected Tuesday awarded $42 cardinal to 3 erstwhile detainees of Iraq's notorious Abu Ghraib prison, holding a Virginia-based subject contractor liable for contributing to their torture and mistreatment 2 decades ago.

The determination from the eight-person assemblage came aft a antithetic assemblage earlier this twelvemonth couldn't hold connected whether Reston, Virginia-based CACI should beryllium held liable for the enactment of its civilian interrogators who worked alongside the U.S. Army astatine Abu Ghraib successful 2003 and 2004.

The assemblage awarded plaintiffs Suhail Al Shimari, Salah Al-Ejaili and Asa'ad Al-Zubae $3 cardinal each successful compensatory damages and $11 cardinal each successful punitive damages.

The 3 testified that they were subjected to beatings, intersexual abuse, forced nudity and different cruel attraction astatine the prison.

They did not allege that CACI's interrogators explicitly inflicted the maltreatment themselves, but argued CACI was complicit due to the fact that its interrogators conspired with subject constabulary to "soften up" detainees for questioning with harsh treatment.

CACI's lawyer, John O'Connor, did not remark aft Tuesday's verdict connected whether the institution would appeal.

Baher Azmy, a lawyer for the Center for Constitutional Rights, which filed the suit connected the plaintiffs' behalf, called the verdict "an important measurement of Justice and accountability" and praised the 3 plaintiffs for their resilience, "especially successful the look of each the obstacles CACI threw their way."

The $42 cardinal afloat matches the magnitude sought by the plaintiffs, Azmy said.

"Today is simply a large time for maine and for justice," said Al-Ejaili, a journalist, successful a written statement. "I've waited a agelong clip for this day. This triumph isn't lone for the 3 plaintiffs successful this lawsuit against a corporation. This triumph is simply a shining airy for everyone who has been oppressed and a beardown informing to immoderate institution oregon contractor practicing antithetic forms of torture and abuse."

Al-Ejaili traveled to the U.S. for some trials to attest successful person. The different 2 plaintiffs testified by video from Iraq.

The proceedings and consequent retrial were the archetypal clip a U.S. assemblage heard claims brought by Abu Ghraib survivors successful the 20 years since photos of detainee mistreatment — accompanied by smiling U.S. soldiers inflicting the maltreatment — shocked the satellite during the U.S. concern of Iraq.

None of the 3 plaintiffs were successful immoderate of the notorious photos shown successful quality reports astir the world, but they described attraction precise akin to what was depicted.

Al Shimari described intersexual assaults and beatings during his 2 months astatine the prison. He besides said helium was electrically shocked and dragged astir the situation by a enactment tied astir his neck. Al-Ejaili said helium was subjected to accent positions that caused him to vomit achromatic liquid. He was besides deprived of sleep, forced to deterioration women's underwear and threatened with dogs.

CACI had argued it wasn't complicit successful the detainees' abuse. It said its employees had minimal enactment with the 3 plaintiffs successful the case, and CACI questioned parts of the plaintiffs' stories, saying that subject records contradict immoderate of their claims and suggesting they shaded their stories to enactment a lawsuit against the contractor. Fundamentally, though, CACI argued that immoderate liability for their mistreatment belonged to the government.

As successful the archetypal trial, the assemblage struggled to determine whether CACI oregon the Army should beryllium held liable for immoderate misconduct by CACI interrogators. The assemblage asked questions successful its deliberations astir whether the contractor oregon the Army bore liability.

CACI, arsenic 1 of its defenses, argued it shouldn't beryllium liable for immoderate misdeeds by its employees if they were nether the power and absorption of the Army, nether a ineligible rule known arsenic the "borrowed servants" doctrine.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs argued that CACI was liable for its ain employees' misdeeds. They said provisions successful CACI's declaration with the Army, arsenic good arsenic the Army Field Manual, marque wide that CACI is liable for overseeing its ain workers.

The suit was archetypal filed successful 2008 but was delayed by 15 years of ineligible wrangling and aggregate attempts by CACI to person the lawsuit dismissed.

Lawyers for the 3 plaintiffs argued that CACI was liable for their mistreatment adjacent if they couldn't beryllium that CACI's interrogators were the ones who straight inflicted the abuse.

The grounds included reports from 2 retired Army generals, who documented the maltreatment and concluded that aggregate CACI interrogators were complicit successful the abuse.

Those reports concluded that 1 of the interrogators, Steven Stefanowicz, lied to investigators astir his behaviour and that helium apt instructed soldiers to mistreat detainees and utilized dogs to intimidate detainees during interrogations.

Stefanowicz testified for CACI astatine proceedings done a recorded video deposition and denied mistreating detainees.