A federal judge threw out a lawsuit in which a man convicted of plotting terrorism blamed top federal officials for a variety of alleged constitutional torts, including torture in a Navy brig in Charleston. U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel said Jose Padilla had no private cause of action for damages and that the defendants, including Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and brig officials, had qualified immunity. "We think the idea that an American citizen who was horrifically abused on American soil has no constitutional remedy is profoundly wrong," said Ben Wizner (pictured) of New York, litigation director for the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation.
Tagged with: Qualified Immunity
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