May 25, 2004

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  Documents released last week by the ACLU reveal that the Pentagon refused to expedite a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, filed seven months ago, for documents related to the abuse and possible torture of U.S.-held detainees.

  
  

  The FOIA request was filed in October 2003 by the ACLU and four other organizations: the Center for Constitutional Rights, Physicians for Human Rights, Veterans for Common Sense, and Veterans for Peace. Full compliance with the request would have required the Defense Department to release records related to the emerging scandal at Abu Ghraib. The petitioners are currently considering litigation to force compliance with the request.

  
  

  The Pentagon has twice rejected the ACLU's call for "expedited processing" claiming that the subject matter of the request was not "breaking news" and that there was no "compelling need" for the immediate release of information about the mistreatment of detainees. The Defense Department also claimed that expediting the request was unnecessary because failure to expedite would not "endanger the life or safety of any individual."

  • 9:31 pm
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