Prosecuting the lawyers who created Bush's torture policies . . .

[bigtree]

Sunday, 19 April 2009

Lawyers Group Targets Ex-Pentagon Counsel For Sanctioning Torture

Lawyers who reject President Barack Obama’s decision not to seek prosecution of officials who may have participated in the torture of terror-suspect prisoners are seeking justice through another avenue: Sanctions against government lawyers who created the “enhanced interrogation” policies of former President George W. Bush.

Their first target is former Defense Department General Counsel William J. Haynes II. The San Francisco Bay Area chapter of the National Lawyers Guild (NLG) has filed a complaint against Haynes, asking the State Bar of California to investigate him and revoke his status as Registered In-House Counsel. Haynes is now an attorney with Chevron Corp. in San Ramon, Calif.

The Los Angeles Times reports that a similar complaint is being prepared in Pennsylvania against former Justice Department lawyer John C. Yoo, the University of California Berkeley law professor, for his role in drafting the legal guidelines that approved enhanced interrogation techniques including waterboarding during his service in the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) during the Bush Administration.

Marjorie Cohn, President of the NLG, told us, “The lawyers who provided the high Bush officials with 'legal' cover were participants in formulating the policy of torture and cruel treatment. They should be the targets of criminal investigations and should also be disbarred for their ethical violations.”

She also noted that the complaint filed with the Pennsylvania state bar against John Yoo “has been put on hold pending the release of the report of the DOJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility, which is apparently highly critical of Yoo, Jay Bybee and Stephen Bradbury, authors of the torture memos."

read more: http://www.pubrecord.org/torture/843-lawyers-group-targets-ex-pentagon-counsel-for-sanctioning-torture.html


Wednesday 28 January 2009
Obama Lawyers Set to Defend Yoo
http://www.truthout.org/012809S

[Egnever]

1. Now we are talking!

[bigtree]

5. the nub

[leftstreet]

2. Bybee, Yoo & Bradbury = Axis of Evil

[Stuart G]

3. I recall hearing John Yoo on TV, arguing for almost unlimited executive

power during war. What a piece of work. Not only shouldn't he be teaching at a law school, he shouldn't be teaching anywhere.

[cliffordu]

4. Releasing all the documents, Boiling the frogs....

Bigger game coming up.....

[Psychic Consortium]

9. Yes nt

[spanone]

6. maybe if our government does nothing, our citizens will

[bigtree]

7. in some cases

. . . it would be better if they did nothing, if all they're going to do is defend Bush and Yoo's tortured policies in court.

[Senator]

8. K&R

[Pachamama]

10. I want the ABA to disbar Yoo, Haynes, Bybee, Gonzales, Rizzo..& Congress to impeach & remove Bybee

from the 9th circuit Appellate court!!!! Then I want these people brought to justice and charged with the crimes they have committed, including jail time.

Then, I want these MOFO's to be so shamed that they will never be able to walk or work anywhere in the country because everyone will know that they are violators of human rights, and of the Constitution and every ethical and moral rule there is. History shall have their names written down for all to know that they were criminals and enemies of the state.

[BeFree]

11. Good one, Pachamama

Very well said. All that would make me very happy.