Campaign for Justice
"He told the truth. They put him in prison. The torturers went free."
John Kiriakou was the first U.S. government official to publicly confirm that the CIA waterboarded prisoners. For that, he served 23 months in federal prison. Not one torturer was ever charged.
John Kiriakou spent nearly two decades serving his country. He was a CIA officer, a counterterrorism specialist who led the raid that captured Abu Zubaydah. He was trusted, decorated, and committed to his work — until the day he decided that some things mattered more than silence.
In December 2007, Kiriakou sat down with ABC News journalist Brian Ross and told the truth: the CIA was waterboarding prisoners. He became the first government official to say so publicly. He called it torture. He said it was wrong. He said it anyway.
The Obama administration responded with the Espionage Act. Kiriakou was charged, tried, and sentenced to 30 months in federal prison at Loretto, Pennsylvania. He served 23 of them.
Meanwhile, the architects of the torture program — the lawyers who authorized it, the officers who carried it out, the officials who covered it up — faced no consequences. Some were promoted. A presidential pardon would not undo the injustice. But it would say, on the record, that telling the truth is not a crime.
Recruited out of George Washington University by professor and former CIA psychiatrist Jerrold Post. Begins an 18-year career in intelligence as a Middle East analyst.
Assigned to the CIA station in Athens targeting left-wing terrorist groups. Recruits foreign agents for the United States. Nearly assassinated in the line of duty.
As Chief of Counterterrorist Operations in Pakistan, leads the raid capturing Abu Zubaydah — then believed to be al-Qaeda's third-ranking official.
Leaves the CIA after nearly two decades. Later serves as senior investigator for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee under Senator John Kerry.
In a landmark interview with Brian Ross, becomes the first U.S. government official to publicly confirm the CIA used waterboarding — and calls it torture. The interview changes the national conversation forever.
The Obama Justice Department charges Kiriakou — making him the first CIA officer ever prosecuted for talking to the media. Those who designed the torture program face no charges.
Sentenced to 30 months at Loretto, Pennsylvania. Serves 23 months. Writes the widely-read blog series "Letters From Loretto." No torturer is ever charged.
Released from prison. Immediately resumes writing and advocacy. Becomes a columnist for Consortium News. Launches the Deep Focus podcast.
Clips of Kiriakou's interviews go viral across TikTok, Instagram, and X — millions of views. New book with Tucker Carlson drops June 2026. The pardon campaign continues.
Add your name to the call for a presidential pardon for John Kiriakou. The CIA's torture program was illegal. John Kiriakou told the American people it existed. He paid for that truth with 23 months of his life.
A pardon would not change what happened. But it would say, officially and on the record, that speaking truth to power is not a crime in the United States of America.
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Enter your ZIP code to find direct contact links for your U.S. House member and both senators — with a pre-written message urging support for a Kiriakou pardon.
His memoir of life inside the CIA. Reached #5 on the New York Times Bestsellers List.
Find on Amazon ↗Memoir of his 23 months in federal prison. Finalist for Foreword Reviews Memoir of the Year.
Find on Amazon ↗The full story of the man Kiriakou helped capture — and the torture program that followed.
Find on Amazon ↗Iran Crisis · Surveillance & Detection · Lying & Lie Detection · Disappearing & Living Off the Grid.
Browse on Amazon ↗Forthcoming title co-authored with Tucker Carlson. Pre-order available now on Amazon.
Pre-Order ↗In-depth interviews with newsmakers, investigative journalists, professors, and fellow whistleblowers.
Watch on YouTube ↗Daily weekday podcast co-hosted with political cartoonist Ted Rall. Live 9AM EST.
Listen Now ↗Regular columns on intelligence, civil liberties, government accountability, and U.S. foreign policy.
Read at Consortium News ↗Investigative pieces on intelligence community abuses, surveillance, and the national security state.
Read at Covert Action ↗Fan-clipped highlights reaching millions across TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts.
Watch on TikTok ↗His official website with latest writing, speaking schedule, and direct contact information.
Visit JohnKiriakou.com ↗Wide-ranging conversation covering his CIA career, the torture program, his prosecution, and what the government is still hiding.
Watch on YouTube ↗CIA torture, the Espionage Act as political persecution, and the treatment of whistleblowers under successive administrations.
Watch ↗Government secrecy, the war on whistleblowers, and how the security state protects itself at all costs.
Watch ↗Civil liberties in America, expansion of the surveillance state, and why whistleblower protections are essential to democracy.
Watch ↗CIA torture, the moral collapse of American intelligence institutions, and the price paid for speaking truth.
Watch ↗The weaponization of the Espionage Act against journalists and whistleblowers and what it means for press freedom.
Watch ↗The landmark 2007 ABC News interview with Brian Ross — the first U.S. official to publicly confirm CIA waterboarding.
Watch ↗The Espionage Act as a political weapon against those who expose illegal state conduct.
Watch ↗Regular contributor discussing intelligence community overreach and the persecution of government truth-tellers.
Watch ↗How the Obama administration selectively prosecuted the man who exposed torture while protecting those who committed it.
Read at The Nation ↗Kiriakou speaks about his prosecution, prison time, and what motivated the government's relentless pursuit of him.
Read at The Guardian ↗The fundamental injustice of Kiriakou's prosecution — the torturer went free, the truth-teller went to prison.
Read at Salon ↗The ACLU condemned the prosecution as an abuse of the Espionage Act and a direct threat to press freedom.
Read at ACLU.org ↗RSF classified Kiriakou as a prisoner of conscience and called for his release, citing serious press freedom concerns.
Read at RSF.org ↗Extensive documentation of the Espionage Act being weaponized against government truth-tellers, including Kiriakou.
Read at The Intercept ↗Robert Scheer and ScheerPost have championed Kiriakou's case as emblematic of America's broken relationship with accountability.
Read at ScheerPost ↗Opinion and advocacy coverage calling for a presidential pardon as a matter of basic justice.
Read at RSN ↗One of the most consistent supporters of Kiriakou — publishing his columns and covering his case since his arrest.
Read at Consortium News ↗Loading latest news...