Feds take hard line in Castro-plot case
By accusing the seven of attempted murder under Section 1116 of the federal criminal code, and not with violating the U.S. Neutrality Act, as some defense attorneys had expected, the prosecutors may be able to block a defense based on discussions of U.S. policy toward Cuba.
They also will be able to seek a much harsher penalty -- life in prison. Neutrality Act convictions typically bring sentences of three to five years.
The severity of the potential penalties comes from Section 1116's roots in one of the 20th Century's most notorious acts of terror -- the slaying of 11 Israeli athletes by Palestinian guerrillas at the Munich Olympics in 1972. Congress enacted the law just weeks after the Munich massacre in an effort to extend federal protection to official foreign guests and their families while they visit the United States.
The law, later fleshed out with wording from international anti-terror conventions, has been used previously to convict several Chilean secret police agents and Cuban exiles in the car-bombing death of former Chilean Foreign Minister Orlando Letelier and an aide in Washington in 1976.
Prosecutors in Puerto Rico ``have put together a very winnable case, said John Mattes, a Miami lawyer who successfully defended a group of militant Cuban exiles accused of shipping weapons to Nicaragua in 1986.
Frank Rubino, a Miami attorney who has defended Cuban exiles accused of violating the Neutrality Act, said he was not surprised that prosecutors opted for the tougher charges.
``The government alleges that they [the defendants] weren't going to just raise some hell, to have some insurrection, but that they were going with an intent and purpose to assassinate Fidel Castro, he said. ``In Miami, people may think that's OK. But anywhere beyond the Broward line that's an attempt to kill a foreign leader, and that is a serious crime.
Sensitive issues
One former federal prosecutor said the indictment's tougher-than-expected charges might allow prosecutors to block the introduction during trial of sensitive issues such as past U.S. attempts to assassinate Castro.
``Some of these guys would love to argue that, `We [the United States] aren't neutral. We've been trying to kill this guy for years,' said the former prosecutor, who asked for anonymity. ``This allows it to be more of a straight -- and less of a political -- case.
``The Neutrality Act is a weak stick, said Mattes, who won acquittal for six Miami Cubans who sent weapons to CIA-backed contra rebels in Nicaragua by arguing that Washington and Managua were not at peace.
Turning state's evidence
``This strips legitimacy away from the defendants. They are accused of attempted murder, not some political adventure, he said. ``And anyone looking at life in prison might be tempted to cooperate.
Asked if a jury in Puerto Rico would be less likely to consider the exile defendants as freedom fighters than a South Florida jury, Juan Masini, lawyer for defendant Angel Alfonso, said he knew nothing about Miami jurors.
``But I've been appearing before juries in Puerto Rico for years and I can tell you this: Our juries are serious, careful of their duties. They will not consider whether the defendants are Cuban exiles or not, whether their target was Castro or not Castro, Masini said.
In 1976, Congress broadened Section 1116 to cover plots to kill an ``internationally protected person like a chief of state outside U.S. territory, under any of three circumstances:
Congressional records reflect that it was a routine amendment, introduced by former House Judiciary Committee Chairman Peter Rodino, a New Jersey Democrat, to bring U.S. law in line with two international treaties.
Former federal prosecutor Lawrence Barcella, today a criminal defense attorney in Washington, said he used the same statute -- 1116 -- to successfully prosecute the Letelier case.
Barcella said the coming trial of the Cuban exiles ``may be the first time it was tried under these circumstances -- involving a plot whose alleged co-conspirators were based in the United States for an attempt to kill abroad.
Meanwhile, there were conflicting versions on whether Justice Department officials in Washington had played an unusual role in the politically charged Puerto Rico case.
``The indictment was drawn up here in Washington . . . a lot of cases are handled out of Washington. There's nothing nefarious going on here, Justice Department spokesman John Russell said Wednesday.
National interests
But earlier in the 10-month-old case, officials in Gil's office had insisted to reporters and defense lawyers that the case was a routine matter being handled by Gil's staff in Puerto Rico.
Russell also denied any suggestion that the attempted murder charges represent a get-tough approach or a warning toward Cuban exiles engaged in violent attacks on the Cuban government.
``There is no change in policy. The facts are that according to our indictment these people conspired to assassinate Castro, he said.
El Nuevo Herald staff writer Gerardo Reyes contributed to this report.
Herald staff writer Juan O. Tamayo can be reached by e-mail at jtamayo@herald.com
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