Binyam Mohamed launches legal fight to stop US destroying torture images

Richard Norton-Taylor
London Guardian
Monday, July 6, 2009

Former Guantánamo detainee Binyam Mohamed has launched an urgent legal attempt to prevent the US courts from destroying crucial evidence that he says proves he was abused while being held at the detention camp, the Guardian has learned. The evidence is said to consist of a photograph of Mohamed, a British resident, taken after he was severely beaten by guards at the US navy base in Cuba.

The image, now held by the Pentagon, had been put on his cell door, he says.

Mohamed claims he was told later that this was done because he had been beaten so badly that it was difficult for the guards to identify him.

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In a sworn statement seen by the Guardian, Mohamed has appealed to the federal district court in Washington not to destroy the photograph, which neither he nor his lawyers have a copy of, and which is classified under US law.

The US government considered the case closed once Mohamed was released and returned to Britain in February. The photograph will be destroyed within 30 days of his case being dismissed by the American courts – a decision on which is due to be taken by a judge imminently, Clive Stafford Smith, Mohamed’s British lawyer and director of Reprieve, the legal charity, said today .

Under US law, evidence relating to dismissed cases must be automatically destroyed. The only way to preserve the photograph is to have it accepted as a court document.

Full story here.

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5 Responses to “Binyam Mohamed launches legal fight to stop US destroying torture images”

1. TowerOLundoneisfun4KIDS Says:
   July 6th, 2009 at 11:24 am

   WE ALL KNOW ANYWAYS.WEVE SEEN WHAT THEY DO THE CAMERA DOESNT LIE. TO LATE HORSE HAS LEFT THE BUILDING ON THAT ONE.

   THANK~YOU VERY MUCH

   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpzV_0l5ILI

2. F@CKTHEGOVERNMENT Says:
   July 6th, 2009 at 11:29 am

   Yeah the F@cking government can DESTROY EVIDENCE but if i wipe my hard drive i get charged with OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE or DESTROYING EVIDENCE.

   Yes the government is immune to all this .
   They can destroy ANY evidence they want.
   M@OTHER F@CKING B@ASTARDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3. l Says:
   July 6th, 2009 at 12:51 pm

   Good for him, and he’ll be successful in getting the photo preserved. It’s people like him that will be the heros of tomorrow for taking a stand.

4. Capt. Choas Says:
   July 6th, 2009 at 3:25 pm

   I wish we could put this scum bag in cell with Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell.
   A couple rounds in the Octagon and we get the truth out of this so called resident (evil)

5. workers comp settlements Says:
   July 7th, 2009 at 6:17 pm

   Hmmmm that’s cool.