Even if you can construct a morally acceptable edge case it should still be illegal. In these extreme edge cases the people on the ground can be expected to br

Even if you can construct a morally acceptable edge case it should still be illegal. In these extreme edge cases the people on the ground can be expected to break the law and break out the thumb screws. After all if you're willing to torture someone your own freedom is presumably a relatively mild price to pay... right? We could then hope that the citizens enforcing the legal system will recognize the correctness of their actions and let them off. Legal torture exists because the powerful don't see themselves as answering to anyone.