Posted on 02/13/2007 6:56:27 PM PST by FLOutdoorsman
Ping!
To all, I set up a thread with links to the transcripts, for anyone wanting to dig in and discuss the gory details:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1784408/posts
Transcripts of Trial - Border Agents Compean and Ramos
DOJ - U.S. Attorney's Office (Johnny Sutton) ^ | February 13, 2007
Posted on 02/13/2007 6:40:43 PM PST by calcowgirl
Napolitano was on CNN???? He told John Gibson today that his WH sources said no immunity.
More info.
From Feb 13, 2007, Lou Dobbs show:
'Tonight, new developments in the outrageous miscarriage of justice of two imprisoned former Texas Border Patrol agents. Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean have been in jail for nearly four weeks. The two were convicted of shooting and wounding an illegal alien Mexican drug smuggler given immunity by the U.S. Justice Department. Tonight the government finally released long-awaited, long-overdue trial transcripts.
Casey Wian is in Los Angeles with the latest on the new explosive evidence in this incredibly, just bizarre case -- Casey.
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it sure is bizarre, Lou.
The nearly 3,000 pages of transcripts in the Ramos and Compean case show that even before the trial started, several key rulings went against the Border Patrol agents. For example, defense attorneys wanted to be able to talk about how dangerous the border region is where the agents encountered the illegal alien drug smuggler. It's an area, of course, with a well-documented history of violent confrontations between drug cartels and law enforcement.
But prosecutors objected to that. And the judge agreed. She ordered defense attorneys to refrain from any mention of what she called the alleged dangerousness of the border between the United States and Mexico.
Another passage shows just how eager prosecutors were to grant immunity to Mexican drug smuggler Oscar Aldrete-Davila and throw the book at the Border Patrol agents. Assistant U.S. attorney Debra Kanof said to the judge, "... we basically had to beg him. He didn't want to come and talk to us about this. And so we basically gave him blanket immunity for any drug or immigration crime that he might have been committing on that day."
Agent Compean's defense attorney pointed out how the government could have sought up to 40 years in prison for the drug smuggler. And an attorney for Agent Ramos said the drug smuggler "could be prosecuted for possession of some 700 pounds of marijuana, for smuggling it into the country, for illegally entering the United States. All of these actions are actions which the government apparently has chosen to forgive in order to obtain his testimony against these defendants, the agents."
In fact, prosecutors sought to prevent defense attorneys from even disclosing that Aldrete-Davila was transporting 750 pounds of marijuana when he encountered the Border Patrol agents. The judge did allow those facts into evidence, but only on a limited basis -- Lou.
DOBBS: This is -- this is outrageous. This administration, this Justice Department, the U.S. attorney in El Paso, the western district of Texas, Johnny Sutton, have a lot of explaining to do. Because also clear here is that that drug smuggler, Aldrete-Davila, was, in point in fact -- he had already confessed to drug possession and smuggling six days before he was ultimately given limited use immunity.
And the fact is that the U.S. Justice Department and the person of the attorney general's office did not ask that -- that drug smuggler one question about the drug cartel behind it, the safe houses, the transportation routes, the vehicles or the systems, the distribution of that -- of those drugs. I mean, it is remarkable.
WIAN: It really is, Lou. And there's some more new evidence that came out today that we can talk about, and that's regarding the lies that were told by the Office of Inspector General that were disclosed last week to several members of Congress looking into this case.
They now say, according to notes from members of Congress, this investigation, according to the testimony from the -- not testimony, but according to the statements of the Office of the Inspector General, they say that this investigation began with the Mexican consulate contacting the U.S. government, which contradicts the sworn testimony in this case that the investigation began when a Border Patrol agent in Arizona who had family in Mexico, family of the drug smuggler, was contacted by that drug smuggler.
So there are new questions regarding this case seemingly emerging every day -- Lou.
DOBBS: So one of the -- one of the concerns that we had as we began reporting on this case, Casey, is that the Bush administration has been its want throughout, was playing a political game here in concert with the government of Mexico and the dominant drug cartels on the northern -- the northern Mexican border area below El Paso.
WIAN: That's right. And if this -- if these statements by this Office of Inspector General investigators to these members of Congress are true, it would add credence to that theory. Now, of course we know they have now admittedly lied during that...
DOBBS: On a host of other -- on separate areas.
WIAN: So we don't know who's telling the truth at this point -- Lou.
DOBBS: We do know one thing -- that the United States government is lying and has a lot of explaining to do in this case without, without any qualification whatsoever. And the idea that a federal judge sitting in El Paso Texas, and a prosecutor sitting in El Paso, Texas, absolutely aware that that is one of the most violent zones along the border with Mexico, a very violent border, the judge would refer to it as alleged violence?
WIAN: Yes. She called it -- I believe her words were the "alleged dangerousness of the U.S.-Mexico border." I guess everything we've been doing for the past several years just hasn't registered -- Lou.
DOBBS: Yes. And I'm sure it comes as some shock also to Americans north of that border and to Mexican citizens living south of that border that it's alleged to be dangerous. And I suppose also to the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, who has put out travel warnings to all Americans in the region.
It is just -- all you can do is shake your head. And to what is at best a miscarriage of justice. At worst, something that we will be working very hard to prove.
Thank you very much, Casey Wian.
WIAN: OK.'
Go figure.
Not counting the thousands of families who were affected by this dug dealers sales. Families should sue this drug dealer.
A reporter from Texas was on c-span the other day. He said the drug dealer had a sister married to another border guard in Phoenix. The druggies family called their daughter and she had her husband, a good an true loyal border guard(little SAC.), file a report and that's how the hold investigation started. That's what the man said.
As to your #1, the testimony of the doctor, Winston Warme, who removed the bullet is in Volume 9, starting on page 180.
O.K, thanks, I'll go read that. But does that just prove that OD was shot, as opposed to when and where he was shot (location not body part)?
That particular portion simply includes the testimony that a surgeon removed a bullet fragment. There was no date stamp. ;-)
Hey... if you can post your questions and findings over on the other thread I set up with the links, there are others that are reading the files, too. They might answer some of your questions:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1784408/posts
You'r right if that is the case, we are enforcing MEXICAN not AMERICAN LAW!
agreed
I believe the round could have been a match for at least 4 types of handguns.
That would be wrong. The preliminary investigation showed a match to 4 types which included the gun used by the BP agents. Had it not, they would not have had to do further tests, but it did, so they did more comprehensive testing and matched the bullet to Ramos's gun.
Which explains why Ramos stipulated at trial that the bullet was his. Stipulations are when the defense and prosecution agree that a fact is indisputable, to save time at trial eliciting testimony regarding that fact.
You don't stipulate to things that are not true, unless you are incredibly stupid.
Your misimpression of the facts here are a direct result of you unfortunately reading threads posted by pro-pardon folks which are full of such misrepresentations. You were also let down by those same people, who are reading this thread but didn't have the decency to correct your misunderstanding in order for your to be better informed.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
I think it is odd that agent Vasquez found the drug-smuggler's cell phone "connected to the cigarette-lighter".
The phone's connection to the cigarette-lighter suggests that drug-smuggler Davila had been using the van for days; contrary to his testimony (his lying testimony that he did not notice the 750 pounds of marijuana filling the van); or the phone was left as a plant with phone-numbers of a competing drug-cartel, or phone-numbers people out of the phone-book. Mr. Davila would then have had a second phone, which he used to call his friends to pick him up. Mr. Davila would have taken his phone from his pocket before he entered the Rio Grande River to keep it from getting wet, which may have been the shiny object the agents saw, causing them to fire.
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.