[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4660 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4660

  To require the videotaping of strategic interrogations and certain 
 other interactions between detainees and members of the Armed Forces, 
   intelligence operatives, and contractors, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 13, 2007

Mr. Holt (for himself, Mrs. Tauscher, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. McGovern, Mr. 
Cohen, and Mr. Farr) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
   to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Select 
   Committee on Intelligence (Permanent Select), for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the videotaping of strategic interrogations and certain 
 other interactions between detainees and members of the Armed Forces, 
   intelligence operatives, and contractors, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Detainee Interrogation Recording Act 
of 2007''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT FOR VIDEOTAPING RECORDINGS OF STRATEGIC 
              INTERROGATIONS AND OTHER PERTINENT INTERACTIONS AMONG 
              DETAINEES OR PRISONERS IN THE CUSTODY OF OR UNDER THE 
              EFFECTIVE CONTROL OF THE UNITED STATES AND MEMBERS OF THE 
              ARMED FORCES, INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVES OF THE UNITED 
              STATES, AND CONTRACTORS OF THE UNITED STATES.

    (a) In General.--In accordance with the Geneva Conventions of 1949, 
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the 
Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading 
Treatment or Punishment, and prohibitions against any cruel, unusual, 
and inhuman treatment or punishment under the Fifth, Eighth, and 
Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, the 
President shall take such actions as are necessary to ensure the 
videotaping of each strategic interrogation or other pertinent 
interaction between--
            (1) an individual who is a detainee or prisoner in the 
        custody or under the effective control of the United States 
        pursuant to a strategic interrogation, or other pertinent 
        interaction, for the purpose of gathering intelligence; and
            (2) any member of the Armed Forces, intelligence operative 
        of the United States, or contractor of the United States.
    (b) Applicability.--The requirement under subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to any strategic interrogation of an individual 
referred to in subsection (a)(1) that takes place on or after the 
earlier of--
            (1) the day on which the individual is confined in a 
        facility owned, operated, or controlled, in whole or in part, 
        by the United States, or any of its representatives, agencies, 
        or agents; or
            (2) 7 days after the day on which the individual is taken 
        into custody by the United States or any of its 
        representatives, agencies, or agents.
    (c) Classification of Information.--To protect United States 
national security and the privacy of detainees or prisoners held by the 
United States, the President shall provide for the appropriate 
classification of video tapes or recordings made pursuant to subsection 
(a). Such videotapes or recordings shall be made available, under seal 
if appropriate, to both prosecution and defense attorneys to the extent 
they are material to any military or civilian criminal proceeding.
    (d) Strategic Interrogation Defined.--For purposes of this section, 
the term ``strategic interrogation'' means an interrogation of a 
detainee or prisoner at--
            (1) a corps or theater-level detention facility, as defined 
        in the Army Field Manual on Human Intelligence Collector 
        Operations (FM 2-22.3, September 2006); or
            (2) a detention facility outside of the area of operations 
        where the detainee or prisoner was initially captured, 
        including--
                    (A) a detention facility owned, operated, borrowed, 
                or leased by the United States Government; and
                    (B) a detention facility of a foreign government at 
                which United States Government personnel, including 
                contractors, are permitted to conduct interrogations by 
                the foreign government in question.
    (e) Exclusion.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed as requiring 
members of the Armed Forces engaged in direct tactical combat 
operations to videotape prisoners or detainees in their custody during 
such combat operations.
    (f) Access to Prisoners and Detainees of the United States To 
Ensure Independent Monitoring and Transparent Investigations.--
Consistent with the obligations of the United States under 
international law, including treaties and related protocols to which 
the United States is a party, the President shall take such actions as 
are necessary to ensure that representatives of the International 
Federation of the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Red 
Crescent are granted access to detainees or prisoners in the custody or 
under the effective control of the Armed Forces.
    (g) Guidelines for Videotape Recordings.--
            (1) Development of guidelines.--The Judge Advocates General 
        (as defined in section 801(1) of title 10, United States Code, 
        (Article 1 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice)) shall 
        jointly develop uniform guidelines designed to ensure that the 
        videotaping required under subsection (a) is sufficiently 
        expansive to prevent any abuse of detainees and prisoners 
        referred to in subsection (a)(1) and any violation of law 
        binding on the United States, including the treaties referred 
        to in subsection (a). For purposes of this Act, the Army Judge 
        Advocate General shall serve as the executive agent and 
        coordinating authority for the development of the 
        aforementioned guidelines.
            (2) Submittal to congress.--Not later than 30 days after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense 
        shall submit to Congress a report containing the guidelines 
        developed under paragraph (1).
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