Asking for a friend: Is it a crime if you destroy official documents of your employer?

[DetlefK]

http://www.rawstory.com/2016/05/larry-wilmore-shreds-cia-for-accidentally-destroying-torture-report-fck-you-this-is-bullsht/

So, somebody at the CIA accidently destroyed the only physical copy of the 6700-page CIA torture report and deleted all of the remaining electronic copies from the internal servers of the CIA.
Why?
Because he or she "misunderstood orders" from the Justice Department that all copies of the report should be preserved.




Isn't there some sort of law that says "Don't destroy documents without permission?"

[lapfog_1]

1. it depends on the document and the employer

This case is specific to the CIA, likely classified documents, and the government preservation of records act.

[Downwinder]

2. Ordinary laws do not apply to spooks.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

3. Depends on the situation.

If it's a private employer, probably not under most circumstances, unless it's some sort of legal filing or paperwork or paperwork related to some legal proceeding.

I would imagine you could still certainly be held civilly liable in such a circumstance where it's not criminally illegal.

[sorefeet]

4. So were these on paper

did he shred them? If not go get them back electronically. If that is how they were destroyed. Then charge the person with sabotage.

[DetlefK]

5. From article:

The process for receiving classified information is that the CIA takes a disk that contains the documents, uploads them to the classified server and then destroys the disk. Someone read the orders of the Justice Department and interpreted them to mean that the document should be deleted from all servers. Because “preserve all copies” means “sh*t, we gotta delete this thing!” Now, both the original and the copy have been deleted.

[Igel]

6. Probably.

Depends if the requirement is "knowingly" or "willfully." Yes, often intent matters for acts committed that we don't like or by those we don't like.

However, the real question is whether anybody is going to prosecute. I doubt it; it would be a public trial, likely divulge info about classified procedures or information, and nail a low-ranking person.

Then again, the prevailing attitude seems to be that any criminal act that isn't punished and prosecuted isn't really illegal or criminal. Selective enforcement of the law leads to this kind of thinking, so the enforcement branches are really those with the last say over legislation.

[Ichingcarpenter]

7. This story is a world wide joke, the only people buying it or selling it

is the CIA, Congress and useful idiots. I do wish President Obama would comment on this
I'd like to know where he stands on this or who's standing behind him with threats since the buck stops where?.... because this CIA talking point an't working

Comments on this have been brutal on every comment page, on every news source.