A mock execution is a
stratagem in which a victim is deliberately but falsely made to feel that their execution or that of another person is imminent or is taking place. The subject is made to believe that they are being led to their own execution. This might involve
blindfold
A blindfold (from Middle English ') is a garment, usually of cloth, tied to one's head to cover the eyes to disable the wearer's sight. While a properly fitted blindfold prevents sight even if the eyes are open, a poorly tied or trick blindf ...
ing the subjects, making them recount last wishes, making them dig their own
grave
A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grav ...
, holding an unloaded gun to their head and pulling the trigger, shooting near (but not at) the victim, or firing
blanks. Mock execution is categorized as
psychological torture
Psychological torture or mental torture is a type of torture that relies primarily on psychological effects, and only secondarily on any physical harm inflicted. Although not all psychological torture involves the use of physical violence, there ...
. There is a sense of fear induced when a person is made to feel that they are about to be executed or witness someone being executed. Mock execution is considered psychological torture due to the mental, though not physical, harm it induces.
The
psychological trauma can also lead to
depression,
anxiety disorders,
post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats o ...
, and other mental disorders after experiencing a traumatic event such as a mock execution. An example of anxiety during a mock execution would be the victim showing signs of fear, crying, uncontrollable movements, and pleading for their life. The psychological trauma may lead to a breakdown where someone may do or say something to stop the execution; it might act as a threat that future conduct may result in a real execution; or suggest that the apparent victim's death has changed the circumstances. Using mock execution may not result in death, but leaves the victim with the memory of the torture they experienced. Treatment after experiencing torture should take effect as soon as possible. Interventions and specialists have been proven to be beneficial. In Lilla Hardi, Gábor Király, Esther Kovács, and Kathryn Heffernan's 2010 publication ''Torture and Survivors: Manual for Experts in Refugee Care'', treatments for trauma are discussed. According to the authors, trauma specialists are able to help victims overcome the experience and their emotions, but that it will be a long healing process. Trauma specialists are able to assist the victim in identifying the issue and brainstorming ways to overcome the trauma. Interventions are beneficial as it allows the victim to be more comfortable with discussing the event, relating to individuals with similar experiences, and practicing coping skills.
Historical instances
* In 1849, members of Russian political discussion group the
Petrashevsky Circle
The Petrashevsky Circle was a Russian literary discussion group of progressive-minded intellectuals in St. Petersburg in the 1840s. It was organized by Mikhail Petrashevsky, a follower of the French utopian socialist Charles Fourier. Among the mem ...
, including writer
Fyodor Dostoevsky, were convicted for high treason and sentenced to execution by firing squad. The sentences were commuted to hard labour secretly and the prisoners were told only after all the preparations for execution had been carried out. Dostoevsky described the experience in his novel ''
The Idiot
''The Idiot'' ( pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform rus, Идиот, Idiót) is a novel by the 19th-century Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published serially in the journal ''The Russian Messenger'' in 1868–69.
The title is an ...
''.
* In 1968,
Commander Lloyd M. Bucher, Commander of the ''
USS Pueblo'', was tortured and put through a mock firing squad by North Korean interrogators in an effort to make him confess.
* The
American hostages held by Iran in 1979 were subjected to a mock execution by their detainers.
* Reports of mock executions carried out by the
US Marines
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
on detainees in Iraq surfaced in December 2004, as the
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...
published internal documents of the
Naval Criminal Investigative Service
The United States Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) is the primary law enforcement agency of the U.S. Department of the Navy. Its primary function is to investigate criminal activities involving the Navy and Marine Corps, though its ...
(NCIS) obtained through the
Freedom of Information Act Freedom of Information Act may refer to the following legislations in different jurisdictions which mandate the national government to disclose certain data to the general public upon request:
* Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Australian act
* ...
. The documents were written seven weeks after the publication of the photographs which triggered the
Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse
Abu or ABU may refer to:
Places
* Abu (volcano), a volcano on the island of Honshū in Japan
* Abu, Yamaguchi, a town in Japan
* Ahmadu Bello University, a university located in Zaria, Nigeria
* Atlantic Baptist University, a Christian university ...
scandal.
*In 2000, British military hostages in Sierra Leone were subject to mock executions by the
West Side Boys
The West Side Boys, also known as the West Side Niggaz or the West Side Junglers, were an armed group in Sierra Leone, sometimes described as a splinter Political faction, faction of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council.
They captured and h ...
to get information from them.
* In April 2003, U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel
Allen West had an Iraqi police officer Hamoodi seized and brought in for questioning based on allegations he was planning an imminent attack on West's unit. After Hamoodi was allegedly beaten by an interpreter and several U.S. troops, West took Hamoodi out of the interrogation room and showed him six U.S. troops with weapons in hand. West told Hamoodi, "If you don't talk, they will kill you." West then placed Hamoodi's head in a sand-filled barrel used for clearing weapons, placed his gun into the barrel and discharged the weapon near Hamoodi's head. Hamoodi then provided West with names, location and methods of the alleged ambush, which never happened, and no evidence of any plans of attack was found. Hamoodi was released without charges; West was charged with violations of two statutes of the
Uniform Code of Military Justice
The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 801–946 is the foundation of military law in the United States. It was established by the United States Congress in accordance with the authority given by the United States Constitutio ...
, but charges were dropped after West was fined $5,000 for the incident and allowed to resign his position with the U.S. Army without court martial.
* In 2014 journalist
James Foley was subjected to mock executions by
ISIL
An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...
militants
The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin ...
before he was beheaded. Mock executions are reported to be a common torture tactic used by ISIL.
See also
*
Death row phenomenon
The death row phenomenon is the emotional distress felt by prisoners on death row. Concerns about the ethics of inflicting this distress upon prisoners have led to some legal concerns about the constitutionality of the death penalty in the United ...
: the psychological trauma that is experienced by death row inmates
References
{{reflist
External links
Newsweek: Inspector General Report Reveals CIA Conducted Mock Executions Interview with Michael Isikoff, investigative correspondent for Newsweek by Amy Goodwin, ''
Democracy Now!
''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long American TV, radio, and Internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live each weekday at ...
''
Hárdi, L., Király, G., Kovács, E., & Heffernan, K., "Torture and survivors, Manual for experts in refugee care", Cordelia Foundation for the Rehabilitation of Torture Victims. Budapest, Hungary. United Nations, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Revised edition (2010).
Capital punishment
Psychological torture techniques