[lbo-talk] a victory in the 11th circuit

John Mage jmage at panix.com
Tue Aug 9 15:29:20 PDT 2005


Today the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the conviction of the five Cuban political prisoners. They had been charged with a variety of offenses (all based on the claim that they were unregistered Cuban agents, but as with even non-political Federal prosecutions multiplied endlessly with conspiracy charges etc), tried in Miami in an the atmosphere of anti-Castro terror typical of that place, and given the horrendous and vicious sentences usual in the US courts.

In an act of great courage, a panel of the 11th Circuit reversed on the (evident and obvious) grounds that avowed Cuban patriots could not get a fair trial in Miami. While this is crystal clear to any observer of average honesty and intelligence , it is nonetheless an act of *personal* courage on the part of the panel. The degree to which this is the case is shown by the extraordinary fact that the 93 page opinion is per curiam - that is to say all three judges took equal responsibility for the opinion so that no single judge could be singled out by the Miami anti-Castro Cubans. To make the case that their personal safety was of concern to the court it is sufficient to note that the opinion ends with a most odd appeal: "we trust that any disappontment with our judgment in this case will be tempered and balanced by the recognition that we are a nation of laws [etc.] ". To say that this an unusual way for an appellate opinion to end is an understatement.

This is a personal much deserved triumph for my good friend Len Weinglass, who briefed and argued the appeal. Len issued the following statement earlier today:

"During the trial, the attorneys for the Five requested a change of venue from Miami to another city five times. The judge denied each request. In December 2001, two of the Five were sentenced to life in prison, one to 19 years, and one, to 15 years. Gerardo Hernandez received two life terms.

Why is it not possible for Cuban nationals like the Five to receive a fair trial in Miami ? What role do anti-Cuban terrorists play?

Miami is the one city in the US where the Five certainly could not receive a fair trial. There are approximately 650,000 Cubans who live there in exile. They control the local press and the media, they occupy the public offices, and they are the major business figures in the area. These individuals and institutions are highly influential, and they all have one thing in common: they take a hard line on Cuba . Miami is a different place than every other city in the US . A portion of the exile community has engaged in terrorism against Cuba for decades. Violence against Cuba is heralded in small, but vocal, circles in Miami . For instance, in Miami , the terrorist Orlando Bosch walks the streets a free man. The US Justice Department once labeled Bosch the most dangerous terrorist in the Western Hemisphere . He was responsible for bombing a Cuban passenger airline in mid-flight in 1976, killing all 73 passengers on board. Hard-line exiles and their supporters play a large role in shaping public opinion and debate in Miami . To try the Five in Miami was a clear violation of their right to have a trial free of outside influences that were prejudiced against them. The venue of the trial should have been moved out of Miami to another location."

Such victories in US courts are exceedingly rare nowadays. It's worth celebrating when they occur. Bravo Len!

john mage



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