Watching Judicial Watch
It's at times like this that Judicial Watch drives me crazy. There are some things they do that I think are great, like their lawsuit regarding the Cheney Energy Task Force. But reading the press release about the lawsuit they filed in the Gonzalez case gets my dander up.
Emphasis mine.
Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption and abuse, said today that it will hold a press conference at 11:00 AM on Monday, April 21, 2003, at the University of Miami’s Casa Bacardi facility on Brescia Avenue in Miami in order to announce the refiling of a lawsuit on behalf of Lazaro, Angela and Marisleysis Gonzalez in the matter of U.S. government’s brutal, unlawful raid to seize Elian Gonzalez in the early morning hours of Holy Saturday, April 22, 2000.Judicial Watch is refiling the lawsuit on behalf of the Gonzalez family following the dismissal without prejudice of an earlier legal action brought by the family’s original legal team. The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit found the crafting of the earlier lawsuit not specific enough. Judicial Watch has re-drafted the complaint according to the guidelines of the appeals court, and has the highest confidence in the strong legal and factual content presented in the complaint.
“The Gonzalez family, the South Florida Cuban-American community, and all Americans who appreciate the liberty and freedoms our Constitution guarantees, are owed a full accounting from the government officials who ordered and conducted the brutal, destructive raid on the Gonzalez home and sent a young boy to be a propaganda tool for a Communist dictator who slaughters his own people. Judicial Watch will not rest until former Attorney General Janet Reno and former INS Commissioner Doris Meissner are brought to justice,” stated Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman .
Damn, I could have sworn that the intent was to send a young boy back to his father. When did it become incumbent on us to determine that parents aren't allowed custody of their children because we don't approve of the area they live in? What's next? Determining that a parent can't have custody because he/she lives in a poor neighborhood and some other relatives live in a better one? If the parent is unfit, that's one thing. But if you have a fit parent, you can't just go around deciding that you don't approve of the area they live in. Not unless there is damn good reason to think that the child's life will be in actual danger. I'm sorry, Cuba sucks, but it's doubtful that Elian's life is in danger. Certainly his life is in less danger than some kid growing up in, oh, say, East New York. And I don't think judges refuse to grant custody to parents living in East New York.
As for the brutal raid, you know, the government has been known to raid the houses of kidnappers. Could the government have handled it better? Sure. Could the family have obeyed the law and given Elian back to his father? You betcha. Had his father not wanted custody, that would be one thing. But when a fit parent requests custody, has a court order granting him custody, and someone else refuses to turn a child over, smells like kidnapping to me. The FBI has gone after non-custodial parents for similar, so I don't see where the Gonzalez family has a leg to stand on.
Comments
It was remarkable to find, when the Bush administration took office, that Judicial Watch wasn't just a tool for the ultra-right.
Doesn't mean they're not crazy, though.
Posted by: William Swann | April 19, 2003 05:24 PM
There is a whole lot more to this situation than what's on the surface. No, a child should not be taken away from a good parent just because of where they live. But in this case, I believe some fathers rightsters using some pretty serious strong-arm tactics were involved. *Google up Dean Tong.
You must realize that Elian's mother risked her life that she might escape the oppression of Cuba and Elian's father. She risked, and sacrificed ALL in the hope of a better life for little Elian, her heart and soul.
Judicial Watch seeks to undercover what desperately needs to be exposed.
Posted by: Sonja aka Plum's Mom | October 12, 2003 01:23 PM
I do realize that. And had she lived, then there would be no argument as to which parent Elian should have remained with. Unfortunately, she did not, and his father is the one he should go to. That has nothing to do with fathers' rights groups. If a father is a fit parent, he should be given custody when the mother has died. Regardless of where he lives. I say that simply because I believe it to be right. There shouldn't have been a dispute in the first place.
Posted by: Lesley | October 12, 2003 06:33 PM