People who torture or who promote torture believe they are above the law. They do not consider that they have an obligation to provide evidence or get a jury to make a decision on a conviction prior to their acts of torture. They are arrogant enough to believe that THEY KNOW that someone is evil and therefore needs to be tortured outside any legal process. But there is a difference between those who agree on the sidelines, and the perpetrators who actually do it.

what sort of a person can do such things and justify it? A sadist- Sadistic personality disorder is a pervasive pattern of cruel, demeaning, and aggressive behavior, beginning by early adulthood, as indicated by the repeated occurrence of at least four of the following:

    * Has used physical cruelty or violence for the purpose of establishing dominance in a relationship (not merely to achieve some noninterpersonal goal, such as striking someone in order to rob him/her).
    * Humiliates or demeans people in the presence of others.
    * Has treated or disciplined someone under his/her control unusually harshly.
    * Is amused by, or takes pleasure in, the psychological or physical suffering of others (including animals).
    * Has lied for the purpose of harming or inflicting pain on others (not merely to achieve some other goal).
    * Gets other people to do what he/she wants by frightening them (through intimidation or even terror).
    * Restricts the autonomy of people with whom he or she has a close relationship, e.g., will not let spouse leave the house unaccompanied or permit teenage daughter to attend social functions.
    * Is fascinated by violence, weapons, injury, or torture.

Those who give licence to such people to perpetrate acts of torture would be outraged if someone kicked their cat. But then the cat has value to them, doesn't it?