Posted on 04/09/2002 9:20:18 PM PDT by Luis Gonzalez
Miami local news have been reporting on the case of INS whistleblower Rick Ramirez.
Mr. Ramirez had a hearing Tuesday. April 9, where he denounced the actions of the Miami INS office, who under direct orders from then INS Commisioner Doris Meissner, destroyed and/or deleted all documents pertaining to the Elian Gonzalez case from their computers.
In a bomb shell announcement, Mr. Ramirez and his attorneys (Judicial Watch) have announced that at a press conference to be held Wednesday, April 10th. at 8:00 AM, they will produce proof that Juan MIguel Gonzalez was fully aware of Elisabet's trip to the US, that Juan Miguel wanted to leave Cuba as well, that the US government was fully aware that Juan Miguel Gonzalez was co-erced by Cuban agents, THAT HE ASKED FOR ASYLUM AT LEAST THREE TIMES WHILE HE WAS HERE, AND THAT EACH REQUEST WAS DENIED BY EX-AG, JANET RENO.
A handwritten notation at the bottom of an INS memo dated Dec. 29, 1999, said that Doris Meissner, then the INS commissioner, ordered the memo destroyed the very next day.
A copy of the memo survived and was made public Wednesday by Washington-based Judicial Watch. It discussed the possibility that Elian's father at one time had sought a visa to move to the United States.
It also discussed allegations that the Cuban government had been coercing the father, Juan Miguel Gonzalez.
If coercion could be shown, the roughly drafted e-mail memo said, INS could "potentially accept the child's asylum application and advise that there is no prohibition on age to child filing application. As such PA should proceed." "PA" apparently refers to "political asylum."
The memo, written by INS attorney Rebeca Sanchez Roig, summarized a conference call on the Elian case involving several INS employees, including Meissner.
The handwritten notation on a printout of the e-mail memo, added by Roig some point after the memo was written, said Meissner ordered the destruction of all copies of the memo through another INS official.
It also said Meissner ordered that no more discussions related to Elian's case be put in writing.
Elian was rescued at sea off Florida in November 1999 after his mother and most of the other passengers traveling illegally from Cuba to the United States died when their boat capsized.
The boy was temporarily placed with relatives in Miami who, backed by other Cuban exiles, fought to keep the child in the United States.
The federal government said Elian should be reunited with his father in Cuba.
An INS spokeswoman in Miami, Patricia Mancha, said she could not immediately comment on the memo.
Meissner, reached at her home in the Washington area, said she could not comment because she was not aware of the details of the allegations.
Judicial Watch attorneys said the copy of the memo was provided to them this week by INS lawyer Diana Alvarez.
It was cited Tuesday at a civil service hearing on INS special agent Ricardo Ramirez's claims of threats, harassment and anti-Cuban-American sentiment in the INS Miami office at the time of Elian's stay in the United States.
In March, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit in which Ramirez claimed he was harassed for reporting alleged anti-Cuban bias in the agency after the Elian case.
Judicial Watch is a conservative group that gained prominence by repeatedly suing the Clinton White House. The group has sued Reno on behalf of 52 protesters and bystanders who claim federal agents were following her orders when they gassed, beat and threatened them during the raid on April 22, 2000. [End]
She is screwed.
Donato was ASKED to appear on shows, he didn't even take all of the invitations.
You want to spread lies, you'll have to deal with me, and I DO HAVE the insider on this one.
I'll never forget that Reader's Digest story: "Never I Go Back"
Too bad we couldn't have had a sequel.
Sure and he did now! But as this thread's head indicates Justice was corrupt from it's own head down.
Remember in the early stage of Mexican War we had a good number of honest men who rebeled at arms against their own fellow soldiers. Where were such honest rebels in DOJ?
Not that they should be at arms, but that a few good honest agents in the crew of goons might have balked and raised a public complaint at no less risk to themselves.
Such is the culture of irresponsibility pervasive in our culture that none did.
Past tense is more appropriate.
You've been registered here for 2 days and you are already telling us what we would have done?
You poor, pathetic, product of a government school, don't you know the Republican policy on refugees from communist countries? Jesse Helms said it best, "once they're on the beach, they're welcome here".
277 posted on 4/10/02 11:50 AM Hawaii-Aleutian by Tickle Me Pank
What was weak---clinton-reno-gore....538 votes weak!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.