New York Judge Orders Release of CIA 'Torture' Documents

The CIA has one month before it must begin releasing reports documenting its destruction of videotapes of detainee interrogations as part of an investigation into its prisoner questioning practices, a federal judge in New York City ruled.

The CIA should start turning over the information and a list of witnesses to the American Civil Liberties Union within 30 days, Judge Alvin Hellerstein said Friday in Manhattan federal court

Otherwise, the agency must explain why it should be exempt from doing so.

An ongoing criminal probe is exploring why the CIA destroyed videotapes in 2005 that document new harsh questioning techniques.

"I reviewed ... representative documents and information produced by the CIA relating to the destroyed videotapes that are the subject of Plaintiffs' pending motion for contempt and sanctions," Hellerstein wrote in his decision.

He said the CIA has until April 9 to come up with a schedule for releasing the papers.

The ACLU contends the destruction of the tapes violated Hellerstein's 2004 order to the CIA to preserve all records pertaining to the treatment of detainees.

FOX News' Mike Levine and The Associated Press contributed to this report.