WSU psychologist casts only ‘no’ vote on interrogation ban

The American Psychological Association last week banned psychologists from participating in national security interrogations — a move that comes after years of criticism of psychologists aiding interrogations at the Guantánamo Bay Detention Camp.

Of the 165 votes, Wright State University psychologist Larry James cast the sole no vote.

That vote comes as James, dean of WSU’s School of Professional Psychology, moves to a new role Wednesday as the associate vice president for military affairs at WSU.

James, who declined an interview request from this newspaper, was the leader of a team of psychologist assigned to interrogators at Guantánamo Bay, with deployments in 2003 and 2007. He joined WSU after retiring from the Army in 2008.

Those deployments led to controversy, including in 2007, when 350 members of the APA signed a letter asking the group’s leaders to investigate James and other members who served at Guantanamo Bay.

The organization’s ban comes a month after an internal report found that some of its members colluded with the military to allow psychologists to play roles in interrogations. Several staff members left after the report was published. Meanwhile, four members, including James, emailed a response criticizing the report for “bias” and “grandstanding rhetoric.”

The letter that James signed cautioned members against voting for the resolution.

“I think psychologists and Americans never want torture to be used,” said Irene Ozbeck, a psychologist representing Tennessee at the APA. She voted yes on the ban. “None of us want there to be torture, that includes the one no vote.”

She says James was concerned about the resolution causing “unintended consequences.”

In James’ book “Fixing Hell,” he said he was sent by the Army “to clean up the abuses” at Gitmo. However, a Toledo psychologist filed a complaint with the psychological board in Ohio against James, claiming that “torture and abuse of detainees never stopped at Guantanamo.” The board declined to investigate.

Critics point to an incident that occurred when James was the chief psychologist at Gitmo: A 16-year-old Canadian detainee claimed he was cuffed in painful positions for hours, dragged through his own urine, and threatened to be sent to Egypt so he would be raped.

James claims he was never involved in the teen’s interrogation.

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