Torture Is Illegal

It is the height of irresponsibility for a commentator of professor Alan Dershowitz’s prominence to assert (Commentary, Nov. 8) that “any interrogation technique, including the use of truth serum or even torture, is not prohibited” under the Constitution. The Constitution prohibits “cruel and unusual punishment,” that is, torture. Furthermore, torture--a form of aggravated battery--violates the criminal law in every jurisdiction in the U.S., and the police are not exempt from these laws. Nor should they be.

A state that grossly violates the dignity of its people abdicates its role and forfeits its legitimacy. The hard-won principle that the officers of the state are subject to the law should not be sacrificed for the craven and illusory hope that, by giving up what is most precious, we may temporarily make ourselves safer.

Martin Putnam

Attorney, Oakland