Five years ago this week, the CIA destroyed video tapes in its possession that showed prisoners in US custody being systematically tortured. The tapes showed waterboarding. And the CIA acknowledged at the time that, if the tapes were ever seen, it would be devastating to the CIA. With the passing of the five year mark, so passes the statute of limitations on the
prosecution of those responsible for destroying these tapes, despite the fact that a Federal Court had
ordered the government not to destroy evidence of torture, and despite the fact that those tapes should have been disclosed to the ACLU as part of the Freedom of Information Act concerning detainee abuse.
A special prosecutor, John Durham, was appointed to investigate whether to charge those responsible for destroying the tapes, and his decision not to pursue investigations is difficult to stomach. Obviously, it is not as difficult to stomach as the government's total unwillingness to
pursue charges against the individuals who committed the torture, or the government's determination to prevent any
victims of torture from ever having their day in court, but it is pretty bad nonetheless.