Supreme Court Refuses Cert in Extraordinary Rendition Case
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal by a Canadian engineer who claims the United States transferred him to Syria to be tortured after he was mistakenly identified as a terrorist.
The New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had dismissed the suit against U.S. officials by Maher Arar. The Supreme Court denied his cert petition today, the Associated Press reports.
“We do not doubt that if Congress were so inclined, it could exercise its powers under the Constitution to authorize a cause of action for money damages to redress the type of claims asserted by Arar in this action,” the 2nd Circuit wrote in its decision. “The fact remains, however, that Congress has not done so.”
Arar was transferred to Syria after changing planes in New York. Canada later determined that Arar was wrongly labeled a terrorist and agreed to pay him $10 million, AP says.
