Seton Hall Law Students Uncover Proof That Guantanamo Interrogations Routinely Videotaped

NEWARK, N.J., Feb. 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Seton Hall Law's Center for Policy and Research has discovered new evidence of a longstanding government practice of recording interrogations at Guantanamo Bay. In light of the national debate about the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) destruction of video recordings, the report proves that the two CIA tapes that were destroyed were only a tiny fraction of perhaps 24,000 recorded interrogations.

A May 2005 report by Lieutenant General Kevin Kiley confirms that each interrogation at Guantanamo was videotaped. Lieutenant General Randall Schmidt issued a report the following month stating that more than 24,000 interrogations of detainees took place at Guantanamo over a three-year period. In the meantime, the Bush administration has announced it will pursue the death penalty for six detainees who will stand trial for crimes related to the attacks of September 11, 2001.

Professor Mark Denbeaux, Director of the Center for Policy and Research at Seton Hall Law, commented, "Our students proved that Guantanamo interrogations were videotaped, which impacts the impending trials of the six detainees. We all want to see the perpetrators of 9/11 punished. But if the tapes of those interrogations still exist, it is imperative that we understand, before these trials start, whether the information was obtained through standard interrogation procedures or through torture."

Captured on Tape, the Center's seventh Guantanamo Report, is based entirely on the government's own documents, most of which were procured through Freedom of Information Act suits. The prior Reports have been cited by the Senate Armed Services Committee, the House Armed Services Committee, the House Appropriations Committee, and the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security; and introduced into the Congressional Record.

    Included in Captured on Tape:    -- Federal judges ordered that "all evidence and information regarding the       torture, mistreatment, and abuse of detainees now at the United States       Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay" be preserved.    -- The CIA admits to destroying at least two videotapes.    -- Seton Hall Law has discovered records indicating that the more than       24,000 interrogations conducted at Guantanamo were videotaped. However,       despite evidence of their existence from its own generals, DOD has yet       to admit that these records exist.    -- DOD has video cameras in every Guantanamo interrogation room and each       interrogation was observed by intelligence agents and other agency       monitors on closed circuit units.    -- Multiple intelligence-gathering agencies conducted interrogations of       detainees in the Guantanamo Bay video-monitored rooms.  Agencies       include the CIA, Criminal Investigation Task Force, Federal Bureau of       Investigation (FBI), Defense Intelligence Analysis, Army Criminal       Investigative Division, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and       Naval Criminal Investigative Service.    -- Detainees routinely refer to the videotapes of their interrogations.    -- The government records contain graphic evidence that interrogators       regularly used force and violence while interrogating detainees. These       same interrogators often hindered videotaping during interrogations by       covering and obstructing the surveillance cameras.    -- The U.S. government keeps meticulous records of all interrogations,       evidenced by FBI agent accounts of detailed logs available to provide       detainees' names, dates and room locations of interrogations, as well       as the names of the interviewers.  The government systematically logs       all video recordings.

Joshua Denbeaux, senior fellow and co-author of the report, stated, "The CIA created a furor when it destroyed just two tapes of Guantanamo interrogations. Now we know there are possibly other tapes in existence of 24,000 interrogations. With Guantanamo detainees about to stand trial it is time for Congress to step in and ensure the tapes of all Guantanamo interrogations remain intact and catalogued. The detainees' defense counsel should have access to the tapes."

"Information obtained through coerced interrogations is not admissible at trial," remarked Michael Ricciardelli, student research fellow and report co- author. "The information in our report suggests that all interrogations at the Guantanamo camp are recorded. These videos can be examined to verify that all information being used in forthcoming trials was obtained legitimately."

Captured on Tape was compiled by the Center's 27 student and graduate research fellows. The report may be read at http://law.shu.edu/news/guantanamo_reports.htm.

Seton Hall University School of Law, New Jersey's only private law school, and a leading law school in the New York metropolitan area, is dedicated to preparing students for the practice of law through excellence in scholarship and teaching, with a strong focus on clinical education. The Center for Policy and Research enables students to gain practical experience while engaging in research and analysis that promotes respect for the rights of individuals worldwide. The students examine primary sources pertaining to national security law and practices of the U.S. government, as well as the reliability of forensic evidence for criminal investigations and prosecution. Seton Hall Law is located in Newark, NJ and offers both day and evening degree programs. For more information, visit http://law.shu.edu/.