Federal Court Refuses to Dismiss Tortured Law Professor's Human Rights Case Against Former Somali Military Official

On November 7, 2011, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by CJA client Abukar Hassan Ahmed, a former law professor who alleges that Defendant Abdi Aden Magan, now living in Ohio, is responsible for his torture, arbitrary detention and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in Somalia.  At the time of Ahmed's torture, Magan held the rank of Colonel in the Siad Barre government and served as Chief of the National Security Service of the Somalia Department of Investigations. 


Significantly, the court concluded that Defendant Magan was not immune from suit and is subject to the jurisdiction of the court for this case.  The court also converted the motion to dismiss to a motion for summary judgment and ruled that the defendant had failed to establish that the statute of limitations had run or that Mr. Ahmed had failed to exhaust remedies.  Because of this ruling, Defendant Magan is now precluded from raising these defenses again.  Mr. Ahmed's case will now move forward to a decision on the merits.