Posada Update—No Deportation to Cuba or Venezuela

Immigration Judge William Abbot has ruled that Luis Posada Carriles cannot be deported to Cuba or Venezuela.^[1] The decision is something of a surprise because it was expected in a couple of weeks.

In the ruling, Judge Abbot found Mr. Posada “deportable as charged in the Notice to Appear,”^[2] Nonetheless, Judge Abbot cited concerns that Venezuela would torture Mr. Posada if he returned to Venezuela, an argument which Venezuela strongly denies.^[3] Maria del Pilar Hernandez, Venezuela’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Relations, questioned how Judge Abbot could find evidence that Venezuela would torture Mr. Posada “since Venezuela’s constitution specifically prohibits it.”^[4]

However, Judge Abbot’s ruling lists a number of factors that led to his decision. He noted that “absence evidence to the contrary,”

• torture exists in Venezuela, although not on a widespread scale;
• the notoriety of the crime of which he his charged does not immunize Mr. Posada from possible torture;
• Cuban authorities, as a matter of official policy, engage in the systematic torture of detainees for the purposes of extracting information, intelligence, and confessions;
• existing cultural, political, and economic ties between Cuba and Venezuela make Mr. Posada’s case problematic because it appears plausible that Cuban agents may be allowed to interrogate Mr. Posada while he is in Venezuelan custody; and
• there is nothing in the record to suggest that Venezuelan authorities would prohibit such a practice, and thereby acquiesce in the torture of Mr. Posada by Cuban agents.^[5]

Based on those factors, Judge Abbot ruled that Mr. Posada qualified for deferred removal.^[6] However, because Mr. Posada was convicted of a serious homicidal crime committed outside the United States, he does not qualify for withholding of removal.^[7] Therefore, it is likely that Mr. Posada will be deported to another country, but for the time being, Mr. Posada will remain jailed for at least 90 days.^[8]

---

[1] Alicia Caldwell, Judge Says Cuban Militant Can’t Be Deported to Cuba or Venezuela, Associated Press, Sept. 27, 2005, available here.
[2] In re Posada-Carriles, No. A-12 419 708 at 2 (Imm. El Paso, 2005), available here.
[3] Vanessa Arrington, Cuban Media Blasts U.S. for Not Sending Militant to Venezuela, Associated Press, Sept. 28, 2005, available here.
[4] Id.
[5] In re Posada-Carriles, at 6.
[6] Id. at 7.
[7] Id. at 5.
[8] Caldwell, supra note 1.