Families of Montreal brainwashing victims push for right to sue CIA, which funded experiments
It's well documented that the CIA, the American intelligence agency, funded the Montreal brainwashing experiments that forever altered Lana Mills Sowchuk's father and many, many others.
"He was tortured with 54 shock treatments, followed by 54 seizures," Mills Sowchuk said of her father.
He was admitted to the Allan Memorial Hospital in 1952 for asthma, told that he could be cured.
But he was put under the care of Dr. Donald Ewen Cameron, who was working on something known as MK Ultra, a secret experiment funded and sanctioned by the CIA.
By using brainwashing and torture techniques, they hoped to learn more about getting information out of spies.
"He was put in an insulin coma for 36 days with a recording saying 'your mother hates you,'" Mills Sowchuk said.
"They wiped his brain. This is not right. It should not have happened."
Sowchuk is part of a group seeking authorization to sue several bodies in Canada: the Allan Memorial Institute, the MUHC and the Canadian government.
But they also want to pursue their court action against the CIA. A lawyer for the U.S. Attorney General, however, is appealing to have the case against the CIA dismissed.
"Generally speaking, there’s immunity that countries get where they can’t be subject to civil action in other countries," explained lawyer Jeff Orenstein, who's representing the group.
But the victims say Cameron was carrying out human experimentation without his subjects' consent, and anyone aware of this should have stopped it, including the CIA.
They held a protest Wednesday to draw attention to their fight against the U.S. behemoth.
"There’s a lot of people in our case that we think should have intervened, either by not helping or cutting it off," Orenstein said.
"They funded part of the money for these treatments for their own good, to support the military and for political reasons, and they’re trying to get out of it," Sowchuk said.
Even if a judge sides with the CIA, the class action may still be authorized against the other parties.
Most of the victims have died, but their families, who are pursuing the lawsuit, say they're prepared for a long wait -- it's already been many years, and it may take several more before they see results.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction overturned by N.Y. appeals court
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that is banned at Queen’s Park.
CTE: Researchers believe widespread brain injury may contribute to veteran suicide rate
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.