Sharks v Jets

John Yoo's biggest mistake was not writing some of the "torture memos," or working for the Bush Administration, or defending himself in print and on TV. No, his biggest mistake was moving to Berkeley to teach at Boalt after he left the Justice Department. Living in the Bay Area has not just made him an easy target of local protesters; it has also made him subject to the jurisdiction in the local federal court, part of the notoriously left-wing 9th Circuit. Lawsuits that would be dismissed anywhere else are given a respectful hearing here. Now, Yoo is being sued by Jose Padilla for writing the memos that led to his alleged ill-treatment behind bars. And, a local federal judge has overruled Yoo's demurrer and will allow the case to go forward: Judge: Ex-Bush Lawyer Can Be Sued Over Torture

A prisoner who says he was tortured while being held for nearly four years as a suspected terrorist can sue former Bush administration lawyer John Yoo for coming up with the legal theories that justified his alleged treatment, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled Friday.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White's decision marks the first time a government lawyer has been held potentially responsible for the abuse of detainees.

"Like any other government official, government lawyers are responsible for the foreseeable consequences of their conduct," White said in refusing to dismiss Jose Padilla's lawsuit against Yoo.

If Padilla, now serving a 17-year prison sentence on terrorism charges, can prove his allegations, he can show that Yoo "set in motion a series of events that resulted in the deprivation of Padilla's constitutional rights," White said.

Reading the above article, it is clear that the reporter either hasn't read the complaint, or doesn't want the reader to know what's in it. It's not as if the complaint is hard to find. In fact, here it is.

It's a litany of the usual complaints about the Dark Night of Fascism under Bushitler, and could just as easily been drafted by Seymour Hersh. Padilla was arrested for no reason and subjected to detention and mistreatment, including the dreaded "forced grooming." Wah Wah. Some big names are mentioned here: Ashcroft, Gonzalez, Goldsmith; so are the officers who ran the brig where Padilla was held. But, Yoo is the only defendant, no doubt because his location makes him subject to the jurisdiction of the 9th Circuit, while Ashcroft, et al. live in circuits where the judge's don't carry the reputation of endorsing this sort of harassing litigation. Yoo's role in this parade of horribles? He wrote memos that created the atmosphere that led to Padilla's detention. Ah yes, "atmosphere creation!" Why, he practically held the cattle prod himself! You would think there would be enough causation problems, not to mention sovereign immunity problems, that would be an insurmountable obstacle to this sort of thing, but when the target is a Bush-era attorney, the normal rules do not apply.

Padilla, I should note, is not asking for big $$. He wants his attorney's fees paid, nominal damages of $1, and, oh yeah, a declaration that the acts alleged in the complaint were unlawful and unconstitutional. Padilla, then, is just as much a vehicle for his attorneys' (who run some "human rights institute" at Yale) thirst for glory/revenge as Yoo. But, as long as there's a front-page headline containing the words "Bush" and "torture," it's all good, right?