How does your evaluation change if<p>a) The kid would have been already dead?<p>b) They didn&#x27;t get an answer?<p>c) They got the attribution wrong and tortured an innocent man?<p>All aside, I don&#x27;t agree that hiding what they did could be morally right.<p>In Germany we had a case where during a kidnapping a very high-ranking police official <i>threatened</i> the suspect with torture, which actually got the location of the child (that had already been killed). He put a note what he did in the protocol and handed that to the DA.<p>He later was sentenced for it (very mildly), and the courts made clear that even this doesn&#x27;t fly and cannot be excused. And of course we got a big public debate about it during the trial.<p>You misuse (legally speaking) your position of power to be morally right, at least face the consequences for it. Don&#x27;t decide for yourself that you deserve to get away with it.