Torture and Reliance on Official Misstatements of Law
Yesterday, while releasing new “torture memos,” President Obama made a statement that many interpret as categorically disclaiming any future prosecutions of CIA personnel for torture. I don’t know what Obama’s intentions are, but it is worth paying attention to what he actually said: “[I]t is our intention to assure those who carried out their duties relying in good faith upon legal advice from the Department of Justice that they will not be subject to prosecution.” This statement is quite similar to one Eric Holder made in writing during his confirmation hearings in January (in response to a question from a Republican Senator): "It is, and should be, exceedingly difficult to prosecute those who carry out policies in a reasonable and good faith belief that they are lawful based on assurances from the Department of Justice itself."
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On February 29 and March 1, the Law School hosted an extraordinary conference devoted to the topic “Torture, Law, and War: What
are the moral and legal boundaries on the use of coercion in
interrogation?” The conference, which was sponsored by the 
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