Posted on 02/15/2005 8:38:26 PM PST by wardaddy
150 detainees freed; more expected soon The Bush administration has begun to comply with last month's Supreme Court decision ordering the release of Mariel convicts in indefinite detention. By ALFONSO CHARDY Miami Herald
In response to last month's U.S. Supreme Court ruling, federal officials have released nearly 150 people who came to the United States from Cuba in the 1980 Mariel boatlift and later were convicted of crimes.
About 600 more Mariel convicts remain in prisons and jails nationwide, along with more than 100 non-Cuban detainees, said Manny Van Pelt, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C.
Most are expected to be released over the next few months in response to the high court's Jan. 12 order that expanded prohibitions against indefinite detention for foreign nationals who are convicted of U.S. crimes but cannot be deported.
''We have started releasing the individuals, and we are moving forward now with the release of those persons who are affected'' by the ruling, Van Pelt said. Monday was the first time the federal government has announced any releases under the court order.
Van Pelt said some of the releases were in the Miami area, but he had no specifics.
Overall, a federal official familiar with the issue said at least 147 Mariel detainees had been released.
Of the 600 or so still in detention, at least 20 were in the Miami area and another 74 in Tampa and Orlando, the official said. He would not say precisely where they were being held, but South Florida officials had previously said several Mariel refugees were being held at Krome detention center in West Miami-Dade County.
The rest of the Mariel detainees who will be released are scattered in detention centers around the country, from Atlanta to Washington state. The largest contingents are in New Orleans and Chicago, followed by Philadelphia, Newark, Denver and Atlanta, the federal official said.
The Mariel boatlift began in April 1980, after six Cubans crashed through the gates of the Peruvian embassy in Havana and thousands gathered there, demanding asylum.
Cuban President Fidel Castro eventually allowed U.S. exiles to pick up their families at the port of Mariel, but he also used the exodus as a way to send some of Cuba's criminals to the United States.
Last month's ruling was a sequel to a 2001 decision in which the Supreme Court held that foreign nationals who cannot be deported because their countries won't take them back cannot be held in detention indefinitely.
However, the 2001 ruling had suggested an exception for foreign nationals classified as ''inadmissible'' or ''excludable'' upon arrival in the U.S. -- as were tens of thousands of Mariel refugees.
''Inadmissible'' foreign nationals are technically defined as having been stopped at the U.S. border..
Most Mariel immigrants eventually were allowed to get green cards, and many obtained citizenship.
But those who were convicted of crimes in the United States remained ''inadmissible'' and thus were denied full due process rights and held indefinitely. In last month's ruling, the court struck down that interpretation as well.
It said excludables and inadmissibles must also be released if they cannot be deported within a reasonable period of time, generally given as six months.
The court said that in some cases, the government would be authorized to continue holding detainees who were deemed extremely dangerous to the community.
Van Pelt said each release is reviewed ''on a case-by-case basis.'' He would not say if any of the more than 600 still in detention would be held back.
He said, however, that the detainees included ''murderers and rapists'' that the government has long been unwilling to release.
In all the cases covered by the ruling, the detainees have served their sentences but remained in immigration custody pending deportation because their countries would not take them back.
''We firmly do not believe that they represent or reflect on the Cuban community at large,'' said Van Pelt. ``We're just simply complying with the Supreme Court's decision. Despite their histories, the court has mandated that we release them.''
Van Pelt said the government will still deport Mariel convicts released under the Jan. 12 ruling once Cuba agrees to take them back.
''It remains our intent to remove them from the United States as soon as the opportunity presents itself,'' Van Pelt said.
Folks should not be held indefinitely after serving their time or without trial to begin with. Not here anyhow.....unless they are terrorists.
Amazing. I remember when they took over USP Atlanta 15 years ago.
I had wondered what happened to them.
Well then I'd guess a few of those Supreme Court Judges wouldn't mind a few of them showing up at their home so they can help acclimate these fellows.
It's a bizarre situation. We can't send them back to Cuba because Cuba won't accept them...yet that's how our system is designed to handle criminal illegals (after they serve their time).
Now they just get to walk our streets (albeit with canes and wheelchairs after 25 years in lockup)?!
The US wanted to deport these mad dogs after they served their sentences but Cuba refused to take them back
I would venture they are institutionalized.
They had already served their sentences many years ago, the held in limbo.
I know relatives of some....a 2 decades plus catch-22.
Not all were serious offenders....the article also says those deemed still dangerous may be detained.
You do get the irony of me posting this I'm sure...lol....I only did this because I have known some of them from my MyAmUh days.
Should I ping Luis?
I have become pro-immigration...a new leaf....but only if they are felons..rotfl (sarcasmo terminado)
Should I ping Luis?
__________
Maybe he has an opinion and some facts
OK....here goes.
Strange bedfellows...
These guys should by all rights be deported...but to where?
And you can't just keep them in jail indefinitely.
If they were naturalized, whatever crime short of capital crimes they had been found guilty would have carried a sentence, and once served they would be released.
I just can't get my mind around this one.
When the INS tried to deport him, he sought asylum, saying that he ...
... to review the cases of 3,500 other prisoners from Cuba, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos ...
When the INS tried to deport him, he sought asylum, saying that he ...
www.migrationint.com.au/news/poland/jun_1999-04mn.asp - 19k -
Can't we give them one of the lesser populated Bahamian islands?
I like that guy.
25 years is a long time. Why not deport them to Peru (remember the mess started at the Peruvian embassy)?
Most of the Marielitos were an embarassment to the Cuban Community. Let's not forget, however, that in addition to the criminals, they included homosexuals (Reinaldo Arenas anyone?) and those who didn't do enough time in the Young Pioneers, etc.
The funny thing was that the Marielitos were dumped on a South Miami Beach that had henceforth been dominated by elderly Jewish socialists (many from mother Russia herself). It must have been funny seeing a bunch of leftists turn into Buchananites overnight.
I only know one person associated with the Mariel boatlift. His mom was pregnant with him when she came as part of the boatlift. This guy just finished Med School at Colombia.
One of the weirdest election results came out of Dade County, where the Cubans voted for Reagan because of his staunch anti-Communism, and the Jews and blacks stayed home or voted for Reagan because of the boatlift. It was the first time Dade County went Republican since reconstruction.
You can't just SEND them to Peru, Peru may want to chime in on the idea.
And you can't sneak a boat INTO Cuba.
Who the hell knows.
Scarface (1983)
Scarface (1983)
MYSTERY 161 Feb 16 12:05am Add to My Calendar
Movies, 175 Mins.
*** (Rated R)
Brutal Cuban refugee Tony Montana becomes the cocaine king of 1980s Miami. Adult Situations; Graphic Language; Nudity; Graphic Violence.
Cast: Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Robert Loggia, Miriam Colon, F. Murray Abraham, Paul Shenar, Harris Yulin, Angel Salazar, Arnaldo Santana, Pepe Serna, Michael P. Moran, Al Israel.
Director(s): Brian De Palma.
Producer(s): Martin Bregman. Get more info at Yahoo! Movies...
NOW SHOWING ON CABLE...the chain-saw scene is coming right now.
The Dems are all upset about holding Al-Qaeda & pals for 4 years, but Marielitos for 24 years? (yawn) So what? says Teddy.
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