Posted on 11/11/2006 5:21:01 PM PST by Iam1ru1-2
Their crime?
Defending our nation's southern border against illegal alien drug smugglers.
In other words, these two men are going to jail for what Congressman Tom Tancredo called, "doing their job" -- securing the border.
Here are the facts:
On February 17, Agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean noticed a suspicious van near the Rio Grande.
The van was being driven by illegal alien Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila -- who was smuggling 743 pounds of marijuana into the United States.
When the illegal drug smuggler saw Agents Ramos and Compean, he ran for the border. The agents heard gun shots while pursuing Davila on foot.
According to media reports, Davila at one point turned toward the pursuing agents and pointed what appeared to be a gun. The border agents fired their weapons at the fleeing illegal alien drug smuggler.
Davila was hit in his buttocks -- although Compean and Ramos apparently did not know it at the time -- and Davila didn't even slow down. He jumped into a waiting van and sped off in the night.
What happened next is so unbelievable, so outrageous that it should boil the blood of every American.
As The New American put it:
"Incredibly, while agents Ramos and Compean and their families face economic ruin, emotional devastation, and real physical danger, as a result of that 15-minute chase, Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila -- an admitted felon and drug smuggler -- has not only gotten off scot-free, he stands to become a rich man, courtesy of the U.S. taxpayers. In a seemingly unbelievable turn of events, agents for the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security contacted the smuggler in Mexico and offered him complete immunity if he would testify that the Border Patrol agents Ramos and Compean had violated his civil rights."
We couldn't make this up if we tried.
Johnny Sutton -- U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas -- then charged these two heroes with Causing Serious Bodily Injury, Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Discharge of a Firearm in Relation to a Crime of Violence, and -- get this -- a violation of the "civil rights" of an illegal alien.
He threw the book at them.
Tell them TODAY that the President MUST use his power of presidential pardon, as granted by the United States Constitution in Article II, Section 2, to pardon Agents Ramos and Compean!The American people will not tolerate the imprisonment of two brave border patrol agents who did nothing more than pursue an enemy of their country.
This terrible wrong must be righted.
________________________________________________
Below is a form letter that you can cut, copy, and paste into your email and send it to your congressman:
_________________________________________________
Dear Representative
Pardon Agents Compean and Ramos!
The shocking decision of U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton to throw the book at Jose Alonso Compean and Ignacio Ramos, two brave and effective Border Patrol agents, will have a devastating effect on our efforts to secure our Southern borders. People nationwide are outraged. Many have expressed their indignation at this sickening misuse of our judicial system, which further hamstrings and intimidates our Border Patrol.
Tom Tancredo Congressman, anti-immigration activist, and author of In Mortal Danger -- said: This is not the message that our legal system should be giving to the drug cartels that are smuggling drugs, people and terrorists across our borders. Andy Ramirez, of the non-profit Friends of the Border Patrol , said: This is the greatest miscarriage of justice I have ever seen. This drug smuggler has fully contributed to the destruction of two brave agents and their families and has sent a very loud message to the other Border Patrol agents: If you confront a smuggler, this is what will happen to you.
Congressman Tancredo and Mr. Ramirez are right. The drug cartels and the Hispanic gangs like MS-13 have just seen the light turn green. The Border Patrol has been stripped naked. It cant fire a gun without risking ten years in prison. It cant violate the speed limit without saying, Mother, may I? And if it detains an illegal alien dealing drugs, it may be violating his civil rights.
Twelve Congressmen have already expressed their deep concern to the President, saying: "[W]e ask that you use your power of presidential pardon, as granted by the United States Constitution in Article II, Section 2, to pardon these two Border Patrol agents. The President MUST pardon these good men. The American people will not tolerate the imprisonment of two outstanding law officers who did nothing more than pursue an enemy of their country. This terrible wrong must be righted, if only to empower our Border Patrol to seal our borders.
Sincerely,
________________________________________________________
If you prefer to have CFIF send faxes to President Bush and the following members of the House and Senate for a fee you can go to:
http://www.cfiflistmanager.org/compeanb.html"
The following are to whom your fax will to sent:
President George W. Bush
The Leadership of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives:
The Hon. Ted Stevens, The Hon. Bill Frist, The Hon. Mitch McConnell, The Hon. Rick Santorum, The Hon. Jon L. Kyl, The Hon. Harry Reid, The Hon. Richard J. Durbin, The Hon. Elizabeth Dole, The Hon. Charles E. Schumer, The Hon. Debbie A. Stabenow, The Hon. Hillary Rodham Clinton, The Hon. Byron L. Dorgan, The Hon. Kay Bailey Hutchison, The Hon. J. Dennis Hastert, The Hon. John Boehner, The Hon. Roy Blunt, The Hon. Nancy Pelosi, The Hon. Steny H. Hoyer, The Hon. Deborah Pryce, The Hon. John B. Shadegg, The Hon. Thomas Reynolds, The Hon. Rahm Emanuel, The Hon. John T. Doolittle, The Hon. Jack Kingston, The Hon. James Clyburn, The Hon. John M. Spratt, The Hon. George Miller, The Hon. Rosa DeLauro
Aren't they appealing?
nothing surprises me anymore
There HAS to be more to this story.
na ahhh. no way.
Why... what?
Bush, and his predecessors, have FAILED THIS COUNTRY terribly when it comes to the border and illegal immigration. It is a travesty of proportions that few have yet to realize...and Washington will now do everything it can to remove it from the table and from the obvious accountability they have for it. That equals AMNESTY just for openers...and it will be even more ugly than that prospect.
The prosecutor brags about his ability to speak spanish. The whole thing is a political suck-up to the Mexican votes. Which is also why the Republican congress never passed immigration reform.
From everything I have heard and read, this is the story. Lou Dobbs has played it up big time. Check his website www.loudobbs.com. There have been articles in the Washington Times and a reporter named Sarah A. Carter from a California paper has covered it extensively.
In a case brought by U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton, the government said the agents "shot an unarmed, fleeing suspect in the back and lied about it." He said they "fired their weapons at a man who had attempted to surrender by holding his open hands in the air."
What Happened at the Trial?
At the trial, the prosecutor dismissed Ramos's testimony that he saw "something shiny" in Davila's hand. She said Ramos "couldn't be sure it was a gun he had seen."
In other words, if it's dark and you can't be absolutely certain that the shiny thing you see pointed at you and your fellow agent is a pistol, don't fire until you get a bullet between your eyes. Then you'll know for certain it's a gun.
Also, the prosecutor said it was a violation of Border Patrol policy for agents to pursue dope dealers on the run. As she explained it:
"Agents are not allowed to pursue. In order to exceed the speed limit, you have to get supervisor approval, and they did not."
Ramos, who had a stellar 10-year record and who had been nominated for the Agent of the Year award, said in reply:
"How are we supposed to follow the Border patrol strategy of apprehending terrorists or drug smugglers if we aren't supposed to pursue fleeing people? Everybody who's breaking the law flees from us. What are we supposed to do? Do they want us to catch them or not?"
The answer to Officer Ramos's question is: "OBVIOUSLY NOT!"
And that's why criminals like Davila are crossing our borders illegally every single day.
And when two law enforcement officers try to carry out the will of the American people -- when they try to do their jobs -- they are handcuffed and hauled off to prison.
Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean deserve to be commended for their bravery and service to our country, not charged by our government for supposedly violating an illegal alien drug smuggler's "Civil Rights."
What the system has done to these agents is wicked and must be undone immediately.
What About the Jury?
Question: What about the jury? Why did all 12 jurors agree that both Border Patrol officers were guilty?
Answer: They didn't!
Three jurors now say THEY DIDN'T WANT TO VOTE GUILTY and at least two more were disturbed by the verdict.
Robert Gourley, Claudia Torres, and Edine Woods say they were told the verdict HAD TO BE UNANIMOUS, which was flat-out untrue.
The three signed sworn affidavits stating that they had been incorrectly instructed.
In addition, some jurors allegedly bullied other jurors, intimidating them into changing their votes.
One juror said he thought that 10 years in prison for the agents was excessive punishment. "Had we had the option of a hung jury," he said, "I truly believe the outcome may have been different."
Another said of the jury foreman, "I felt like he knew something about the judge that we did not know. I did not think that Mr. Ramos or Mr. Compean was guilty of the assaults and civil rights violations."
In light of these juror statements, defense attorney Mary Stillinger asked that the verdict be set aside, but the judge oddly, arbitrarily denied the motion.
What are Others Saying?
People all over the country have expressed their indignation at this sickening misuse of our judicial system, which further hamstrings and intimidates our Border Patrol.
Tom Tancredo -- Congressman, anti-illegal immigration activist, and author of In Mortal Danger -- said: "This is not the message that our legal system should be giving to the drug cartels that are smuggling drugs, people and terrorists across our borders."
Andy Ramirez, of the non-profit Friends of the Border Patrol, said: "This is the greatest miscarriage of justice I have ever seen. This drug smuggler has fully contributed to the destruction of two brave agents and their families and has sent a very loud message to the other Border Patrol agents: If you confront a smuggler, this is what will happen to you." [Emphasis Mine]
Twelve members of Congress have already sent a letter to President Bush, in which they said in part: "We ask that a full investigation of this case be ordered immediately. We are confident that during such an investigation you will find that these Border Patrol agents were acting within the scope of their duty and were unjustly prosecuted. Also, we ask that you use your power of presidential pardon, as granted by the United States Constitution in Article II, Section 2, to pardon these two Border Patrol agents."
These expressions of outrage and anguish underline the monumental importance of this case.
The drug cartels, gangs, and even terrorists seeking to exploit our nation's open borders have just seen the light turn green. The Border Patrol has been stripped naked. It can't fire a gun without risking more than ten years in prison. It can't violate the speed limit without saying, "Mother, may I?" And if it detains an illegal alien dealing drugs, it may be violating his civil rights.
If you think illegal immigration is a problem, wait till you see what happens after Compean and Ramos are hauled off to prison in chains.
And what about Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila?
He'll be back. (He's probably back already): selling drugs to America's children and grandchildren, thumbing his nose at Homeland Security -- a hero to all his drug smuggling and criminal friends back home, where he is hailed as the smuggler who disarmed the U.S. Border Patrol.
And next time he'll bring more just like him -- all of them gleefully gloating over the knowledge that this country doesn't have the will to close its own borders.
The U.S. is Sending the Wrong Message to our Border Patrol
Retired Border Patrol Supervisor David Stoddard -- a Border Patrol veteran of 27 years -- said of Ramos' and Compean's situation, "This is outrageous. This whole incident tells the Border Patrol agents all over the country it's better to go out to their areas of responsibility and bring a portable DVD player and watch a movie, because that way you won't get into trouble."
In fact, this situation has destroyed the morale of our Border Patrol agents. According to one source, "A lot of agents are now saying, 'We don't want to be the next Ramos and Compean.'"
As much as I wonder if there is more to this story, I am still at a loss of words.
Their imprisonment is a disgraceful travesty of justice! This verdict must be tossed out!
They should get a medal!
I think they should be rewarded for stopping a crime from being committed on the border.
I've had it with both political parties trying to "play to" the illegals in order to wind-up with them being supporters of "that party" in order that they can maintain their governmental power.
Sometimes I feel like screaming at the politicians: "What don't you understand about the definition of "illegal??"!!!
I would never last a month as President. I'd announce that the American border with Mexico will be protected with the full force of the law, and anyone attempting to cross the border in violation thereof will be subject to being shot on sight. I would put troops on the border, including snipers with night scopes and give them the order to enforce our sovereign border. And I would fully expect a daily report as to how many illegals were "eliminated" from entry.
Can you say instant "impeachment"?
I haven't heard anything about an appeal. I will post it if and when it happens.
This is an atrocity. The Caca Tunnel has been funneling illegal turds into this country TOO LONG.
The drugs, criminals, mexican mafia and hispanicanized arab terrorists is a WAR!!
These two border guards should have shot the fooker.
ILLEGAL immigrants allowed to enter into a prosecution of American CITIZENS is IN ITSELF ILLEGAL.
Allowing ILLEGALS to VOTE is in itself ILLEGAL.
Don't worry, I will write my congressional representatives about this Caca Tunnel CORRUPTION.
Using TAXPAYERS MONEY to pay off AN ILLEGAL DRUG RUNNER is ILLEGAL also.
You're right, my blood is boiling....
Prayers that President Bush pardons them!
How about if their families filed a countersuit against the government for putting these men in harms way by hindering their ability to capture dangerous illegals and drug smugglers?
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