The Center for Constitutional Rights’ longstanding case, Al Shimari v. CACI, brought on behalf of three Iraqi torture survivors against U.S.-based government contractor CACI Premier Technology, Inc., is going to trial for the second time, after a jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict in April 2024. The federal lawsuit, filed in 2008, alleges that CACI participated in a conspiracy to commit, and otherwise aided and abetted, unlawful conduct including torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, where it was hired by the U.S. to provide interrogation services. The plaintiffs, Suhail Al Shimari, Asa’ad Zuba’e, and Salah Al-Ejaili, were all held at the “hard site,” an area of the Abu Ghraib prison where the most severe and notorious abuses occurred in 2003-2004. 

The trial will take place before Judge Leonie Brinkema at the Albert V. Bryan Courthouse in the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria. The Center for Constitutional Rights, along with our co-counsel at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, the Law Offices of Charles B. Molster, III, PLC, and Akeel & Valentine, PLC, will be presenting the case.

Important Scheduling Information

• The trial will begin on October 30 at 10 a.m. ET with jury selection, followed by opening statements, and witness testimony is expected to last for approximately one week before the jury deliberates. **There will be no trial on Tuesday, November 5**
• Court proceedings will generally be held from 9:30 am to 6:00 pm ET, with a lunch break and a short afternoon break.

****If you plan to attend the trial, we encourage you to arrive early. Please note that electronic devices are not permitted in the courthouse, and the court will not store them. Members of the public will also need to pass through a security check and present ID prior to entering the court. Please visit the court's website for more security information***

We will post any updates to the schedule here during trial. Visit our trial resource page, Justice for Abu Ghraib, for more information about this case and historic trial.