Mitchell, Jessen & Associates

Summary

Mitchell, Jessen & Associates was a company founded in 2005 by psychologists James Mitchell and John "Bruce" Jessen that the CIA contracted to run its entire post-9/11 torture program, including supplying interrogators and security for black sites and rendition operations.

Financial Details

According to the Senate Intelligence Committee report:

• The U.S. government paid the company $81 million over several years
• Mitchell and Jessen were allowed to evaluate the effectiveness of their own torture methods
• The CIA later admitted this self-evaluation was a mistake

Services Provided

The company was contracted to provide:

• Interrogators for CIA black sites
• Security personnel for black sites
• Rendition operations support
• Training of CIA personnel in "enhanced interrogation techniques"

Torture Program

The company was responsible for implementing torture methods including:

• Wall slamming (walling)
• Confinement in coffin-like boxes
• Exposure to extreme temperatures
• Ear-splitting levels of music
• Starvation
• Various forms of water torture
• Sleep deprivation for days
• Stress positions

Legal Issues

Salim v. Mitchell (2015-2017)

The ACLU filed a lawsuit against Mitchell and Jessen on behalf of three CIA torture victims. The lawsuit was filed under the Alien Tort Statute for:

• Commission of torture
• Cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment
• Non-consensual human experimentation
• War crimes

In August 2017, the case was settled out of court — marking the first settlement in a case involving CIA torture.

Location

The company was based in Washington State, where John Jessen still resides.