After September 11, 2001, U.S. officials authorized the cruel treatment and torture of prisoners held in Afghanistan, Iraq, Guantanamo, and the CIA's secret prisons overseas.

This database documents the U.S. government's official experiment with torture. At present, the database contains well over 100,000 pages of government documents obtained primarily through Freedom of Information Act litigation and requests filed by the ACLU, and through litigation of Salim v. Mitchell, a lawsuit brought by the ACLU on behalf of the survivors and the family of a dead victim of the CIA torture program. To learn more about the database, please read the About and Search Help pages. If you're a developer, you can also access this data through our API.

Search Result (43)

RelevanceDateRelease Date
Dec. 30, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 4585

This document was originally released on June 1, 2005 (ACLU-RDI 3547).  This OLC memo supercedes the August 2002 memo interpreting the anti-torture statute. The memo disagrees with the previous memo's conclusions that torture is ...

Aug. 24, 2009
Legal Memo
Daniel B. Levin
James B. Comey
Daniel B. Levin, James B. Comey, George W. Bush
June 18, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 4601

An OLC memo from Jack Goldsmith to John Helgerson, the CIA's Inspector General, expressing disagreement with the Special Review's representation of OLC opinions on two points -- whether John Ashcroft (Attorney General) authorized ...

Aug. 24, 2009
Legal Memo, Letter
Jack L. Goldsmith
John L. Helgerson
Jack L. Goldsmith, John L. Helgerson, John D. Ashcroft, John A. Rizzo, George J. Tenet
Abu Zubaydah
EIT, Waterboarding, Use of water
Sept. 06, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 4583

An OLC memo to the CIA addressing whether the use of "twelve particular interrogation techniques (attention grasp, walling, facial hold, facial slap (insult slap), cramped confinement, wall standing, stress positions, sleep depravation, ...

Aug. 24, 2009
Legal Memo, Letter
Daniel B. Levin
John A. Rizzo
Daniel B. Levin, John A. Rizzo
EIT, Use of water, Water dousing, Physical assault, Face slap or insult slap, Stomach/abdominal slap, Attention grasp, Facial hold, Walling, Stress positions, Cramped confinement, Sleep deprivation, Dietary manipulation, Nudity
Sept. 02, 2004 | FBI | OLC | ACLU-RDI 4883
The memo discusses the result of their investigation/survey. It states that 9 FBI employees, of the 532 who were assigned to Guantanamo after 9/11, observed aggressive mistreatment, interrogations and interview techniques of GTMO detainees. ...
Jan. 02, 2007
Non-legal Memo, Investigative File
Bruce J. Gebhardt
Bruce J. Gebhardt, Valerie E. Caproni
Sept. 23, 2004 | FBI | OLC | ACLU-RDI 4884
Memo discusses the result of the Office of Inspections special inquiry into abuse of detainees at Guantanamo after September 11, 2001. The office sent a survey to FBI employees who were assigned to Guantanamo after 9/11 requesting them to ...
Jan. 02, 2007
Non-legal Memo, Investigative File
Valerie E. Caproni | Thomas J. Harrington
Valerie E. Caproni, Donald W. Thompson, Jr, Thomas J. Harrington, Robert D. Grant
Dec. 30, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 3547
Department of Justice Office of Legal Council on Standards of Conduct for Interrogation under 18 U.S.C. §§ 2340-2340A. This memo superceding the August 2002 memo interpreting the anti-torture statute. The memo disagrees with the previous memo's ...
June 01, 2005
Legal Memo
Daniel B. Levin
James B. Comey
Daniel B. Levin, James B. Comey, George W. Bush
Jan. 21, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 2752

Refers to Iraq matter. All content redacted.

Oct. 15, 2004
Email
Jack L. Goldsmith
David E. Nahmias
Jack L. Goldsmith, David E. Nahmias
Jan. 21, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 2753

Refers to mistake of law. All other content redacted.

Oct. 15, 2004
Email
Jack L. Goldsmith
David E. Nahmias
Jack L. Goldsmith, David E. Nahmias
July 14, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 2757
Email from Terese L. McHenry re: unclassified version of CRM comments on OLC opinion forwarded to David E. Nahmias by Jack L. Goldsmith. All other contents redacted.
Oct. 15, 2004
Email
Jack L. Goldsmith
David E. Nahmias
Jack L. Goldsmith, David E. Nahmias, Teresa L. McHenry, Laura H. Parsky, Barry Sabin, Michael J. Mullaney, Ronnie Edelman
June 02, 2004 | OLC | ACLU-RDI 2772
An email distributing "AG talking points on interrogations" in anticipation of a meeting. An attachment is included but not provided with the document.
Oct. 15, 2004
Email
Steven G. Bradbury
Patrick Rowan | David E. Nahmias | Peter B. Owen | William Moschella | Jack L. Goldsmith | Patrick Philbin | Daniel J. Bryant | Daniel B. Levin | Crystal Roberts | Sean McLaughlin | Rena Comisac | Robert B. Parmiter | Renee Lerner | Rebecca Seidel
Steven G. Bradbury, Patrick Rowan, David E. Nahmias, Peter B. Owen, William E. Moschella, Jack L. Goldsmith, Patrick Philbin, Daniel J. Bryant, Daniel B. Levin, Crystal Roberts, Sean McLaughlin, Judith S. Garrett, Thomas R. Kane, Julie E. Samuels, Rena Comisac, Renee Lerner, Paul P. Colborn, David Blake, Rebecca Seidel, Robert B. Parmiter, Patrick Rowan