...Judge Leonie Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria refused to dismiss the torture suit against CACI Premier Technology, a military-industrial complex linchpin based in nearby Arlington with more than 22,000 employees and billions of dollars in government contracts.

The lawsuit against CACI—filed in 2008 by the Center for Constitutional Rights on behalf of former detainees Suhail Al Shimari, Asa'ad Al Zuba'e, and Salah Al-Ejaili—alleges that company officials conspired with U.S. military personnel in subjecting the plaintiffs to torture and other crimes. A 2004 investigation by U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Anthony Jones and Maj. Gen. George Fay found that CACI employees participated in and encouraged the torture of Abu Ghraib prisoners.

Center for Constitutional Rights legal director Baher Azmy said Brinkema's decision "affirms that the human rights norms vindicated by the Alien Tort Statute remain vital and are available to address a case revealing substantial evidence identified by the court that CACI facilitated and promoted the torture and abuse of detainees at Abu Ghraib."

"The ruling," Azmy added, "has cleared the way, almost 20 years hence, for our clients to tell their story in open court."

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