WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 23 (UPI) -- A West Palm Beach jury has awarded $54.6 million to three victims who charged that two Salvadoran generals now living in Florida knew about torture carried out in their country but did nothing.
It took a federal court jury four days to reach a verdict after a four-week trial.
Carlos Eugenio Vidas Casanova, 64, of Palm Coast, Fla., and Jose Guillermo Garcia, 69, of Plantation, Fla., were held responsible for the torture of political prisoners by soldiers under their command in the 1980s.
Both men are retired army generals and former defense ministers in El Salvador. They denied knowing anything about the torture and said they could not control many of the troops involved in the conflict.
The suit was brought by three Salvadorans, who are also now residents of Florida. They are Carlos Mauricio, Neris Gonzalez and Juan Romagoza.
The victims sued under the 1992 U.S. Torture Victim Protection Act, which allows courts to assess damages against people who commit human rights abuses abroad.
The civil war in El Salvador ended in 1992 after leaving 75,000 people dead. The United Nations said most of them were civilians.
It was the second trial on the issue for the two generals. Two years ago they were judged as not responsible for the torture and murder of four Catholic nuns from the United States in 1980. That decision has been upheld on appeal.
