Saturday, September 11, 2010

Editorial: U.S. ICE Deports Moises Mory Lamas Despite Pending Cases

Moises Roger Mory Lamas

Editorial: In this case, the Mory Lamas deportation does warrant a federal inquiry into actions taken by ICE agents.

By H. Nelson Goodson
September 11, 2010

Newark, New Jersey - Last Wednesday at midnight, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) agents escorted Moises Roger Mory Lamas, 53, from The Essex County Correctional Facility to the New York Kennedy Airport and deported him to Peru. Mory Lamas had been challenging his deportation since 1999.
His deportation by ERO agents and the video taping of his plight for more than four hours in the U.S. and including the continued video taping of his deportation flight from N.Y. to Lima, Peru draws numerous questions. Why was it taped? It seems, these ERO agents knew or discovered that Mory Lamas had several federal pending cases and had an authorized work permit until 2011. By law, every person whether a U.S. Citizen, legal or undocumented are afforded a Constitutional right to due process and have his/her day in court, including immigration court proceedings.
In this case, Mory Lamas was deported by ERO agents despite his pending cases. Even when Mory Lamas who was interviewed on Thursday from Lima, Peru said, he told the ERO agents of the pending cases and that they were violating his constitutional rights.
The ERO agents ignored his pleas and they deported him. The federal agents actions and authorization from ICE administrative supervisors and the approval of John T. Morton, Assistant ICE Secretary to execute Mory Lamas' deportation warrants a federal investigation by members of Congress, the U.S. Department of Justice-Civil Rights Division and the Obama administration. So far, the ERO or ICE have yet to comment about articles alleging illegal conduct, procedures and activities by ICE and ERO agents in Hispanic News Network U.S.A. (HNNUSA). Morton and his top administrative officials in various departments from ICE have been contacted through email and articles have been provided for their response and none has been afforded by ICE.
Not even a press release from ICE concerning the Mory Lamas deportation and the video taping of his plight during deportation has been released. Why? Simply put, they probably committed legal errors and indeed as Mory Lamas alleged, they violated his constitutional rights. 
ICE-ERO agents and Morton should be held accountable and should be federally charged with civil rights and constitutional violations, if in fact they did violate Mory Lamas constitutional rights.
On Thursday, Mory Lamas confirmed he will continue to challenge his deportation and he should.
In brief; on August 23, Mory Lamas was arrested when he failed to buy an airline ticket for voluntary departure on September 18. Mory Lamas was taken to the Essex County Correctional Facility, 354 Doremus Avenue in Newark for deportation. His arrest resulted from alleged dubious actions by ICE agents that transpired a week earlier.
On August 12, three ICE agents took Peruvian citizen Mory Lamas to the Peru Consulate in Paterson from an ICE office he was reporting as required, so Consul Alejandro Beoutis could approve his deportation. Mory Lamas had alleged, Consul Beoutis told him he had to surrender his Peruvian passport to ICE, or face legal authorization for ICE to deport him anyway from the Peru government, if he wouldn't comply. He said, that afterwards ICE agents took him home and confiscated his Peruvian passport, as approved and mandated by Consul Beoutis.
A Consulate official denied that Beoutis or the Consulate was forcing Mory Lamas to give up his Peruvian passport, but an official Peruvian Consulate Act (agreement for voluntary departure) signed by Beoutis and three ICE agents in Spanish says otherwise. The Mory Lamas family members now say, Beoutis and the Consulate were provided certain services from the U.S government for Beoutis cooperation, which is deemed inappropriate.
Mory Lamas previously accused, Peruvian Consul Beoutis, and three ICE agents identified in the Act signatures as Juan Mezarina, Oscar Torres and James Laforge of violating his rights, under immigration law and the U.S. Constitution.
The ERO agents deported Mory Lamas before the actual date of voluntary departure, which he says was given no alternative and Consul Beoutis did not allow him to consult his attorney Glenn Troublefield.
The Mory Lamas case is proof how disfunctional and probable acts committed by federal agencies under former President George W. Bush and current President Barack H. Obama.
Mory Lamas has spend at least five years in immigration detention, until he was released in early 2009. Mory Lamas was convicted of possession of drugs, a minor state offense. He pleaded no-contest in 1986, and his lawyer did not advice Mory Lamas of the consequences and possible deportation. He served 6 months in jail and was fined $30.00 for the conviction.
He began his appeal in 1999, served one year in '99 and then served four years from 2004 and was finally released in January 2009. Since then, Mory Lamas was put on an electronic device, had to report to an ICE officer at least twice a week, until he finally was granted a work permit until 2011.
Ruth Mory a U.S. Citizen, his wife had petition for Mory Lamas residency in 2004, under the 1986 amnesty Northwest Immigration Projects.
Mory Lamas had a pending habeas corpus appeal with federal Judge Dennis Cavanaugh in the district of Newark, before being deported on Wednesday.
Mory Lamas has a 17-year-old daughter who is a U.S Citizen.
Ruth Mory, Moises' wife is a cancer survivor, suffers from diabetes and other ailments was taken to the hospital for emotional stress and high blood pressure on Tuesday and was released on Thursday. Family members say, Ruth condition could suffer further stress and could turn fatal, especially now that ICE deported her husband who was the principle income earner for the family. 

Copy of official Act in Spanish by the Peru Consulate, and Consul Alejandro Beoutis in Paterson, identifying ICE agents with their signatures, concerning Moisés Roger Mory Lamas departure from the U.S. (Click on photo to enlarge)


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