John C. Yoo Memo on Torture

A memo by John C. Yoo, then of the Justice Department, argued federal laws prohibiting assault, maiming and other crimes did not apply to military interrogators who questioned al-Qaeda captives because the president's ultimate authority as commander in chief overrode such statutes. Although the existence of the memo has long been known, its contents had not been previously disclosed. "Whether conduct is conscience-shocking turns in part on whether it is without any justification," Yoo wrote, explaining, for example, that it would have to be inspired by malice or sadism before it could be prosecuted. here