RICHMOND, Va. — A federal appeals court is hearing arguments regarding an appeal from CACI, a contractor connected to the U.S. military, which was ordered to pay $42 million for its involvement in the abuse of detainees at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison two decades ago.
CACI, based in Reston, Virginia, is contesting last year’s verdict from a civil lawsuit in which a jury found the contractor partially responsible for the torture of detainees during the U.S. occupation of Iraq. The plaintiffs, Suhail Al Shimari, Salah Al-Ejaili, and Asa’ad Al-Zubae, reported experiences of severe mistreatment including beatings, sexual abuse, and forced nudity.
During the trial, evidence suggested that while CACI interrogators did not physically inflict the abuse, they played a key role in facilitating it by collaborating with military police to subject detainees to harsh treatment in order to extract information. The jury awarded each plaintiff $3 million in compensatory damages and $11 million in punitive damages.
CACI, which has continuously denied any wrongdoing, insists its employees were not implicated in any physical abuse of the plaintiffs. However, military investigations have indicated that some CACI personnel engaged in inappropriate conduct.
Last year's civil trial marked a significant milestone, as it represented one of the first instances where U.S. jurors evaluated claims from Abu Ghraib detainees since the scandal erupted in 2004, when graphic photos of detainee abuse horrified the world. Although military police associated with the abuses were prosecuted, no civilian interrogators from CACI faced criminal charges despite official findings identifying wrongdoing on their part.
Following the jury's ruling, CACI filed an appeal, further prolonging a legal battle that has unfolded over the past 17 years. The total damages awarded to the plaintiffs are said to match their original requests and exceed the fees that CACI earned for providing interrogations at Abu Ghraib.
