By Martin Weil and Arthur Santana, Washington Post Staff Writers. Sunday, May 7, 2000; Page A02
Elian Gonzalez, the 6-year-old Cuban boy at the center of a historic and ongoing custody struggle, emerged yesterday from the near invisibility of recent days to turn up at the home of a prominent Georgetown couple.
Neighbors and others familiar with yesterday's events said Elian apparently attended a celebration at the salmon-pink stucco home of Smith Bagley and his wife, Elizabeth, a former ambassador to Portugal. Smith Bagley, an heir to the R.J. Reynolds tobacco fortune, has been an active Democratic
fundraiser, and the Bagleys have played host to President Clinton.
Balloons were visible in the doorway of the Bagleys' house, from which Elian and his father, Juan Miguel Gonzalez, emerged about 9:40 p.m. Neither the boy nor his father made any comment to reporters while leaving the home on 29th Street NW. Nor could the Bagleys be reached later for comment.
Elian's departure was low-key, as was his arrival. The boy, his father and others with them entered a van, which drove off with an escort of D.C. and U.S. Park Police officers. The U.S. Marshals service, which has principal responsibility for the boy's security, had no comment about his
whereabouts yesterday.
It was not immediately clear why Elian was taken to the Bagleys', but it is believed that he--or his father and stepmother--might have been growing restless in the seclusion of the Eastern Shore estate where they have been living in recent days.
The Bagleys, who have played host to President Clinton and Vice President Gore, have a son who is about Elian's age, neighbors said. Among those who also went into the two-story house yesterday evening was Gregory Craig, the attorney for Juan Gonzalez.
Craig could not be immediately reached for comment last night.
Little publicity preceded the visit; neighbors said they had seen "No Parking" signs on their street earlier in the day, but knew little about the reason. Some said they had anticipated another visit by Clinton.
The trip apparently was arranged with little fanfare. A government official said that she had heard that Elian was possibly "going to be in Georgetown on Saturday," but the information specified no precise destination.
The official said it was her understanding that if Elian made the trip, it would be his first long excursion beyond the confines of the Carmichael Farm, on Maryland's rural eastern shore, where he has stayed in recent days.
Elian was brought to this area two weeks ago after being taken by federal agents from the house of relatives in Miami's Little Havana. He had stayed there after being rescued from the waters off Florida, in which his mother and others drowned during an attempt to leave Cuba.
After being taken in by his relatives, Elian quickly became an international celebrity, as a battle over his custody flared. Demonstrators who wanted the boy to stay with his Miami relatives surrounded the Little Havana house almost round-the-clock.
When he was brought to Washington, Elian and his father stayed briefly at Andrews Air Force Base, shielded by tight security. Soon afterward, they were taken to the Eastern Shore, far from the cameras, the shouting and the excitement.
© 2000 The Washington Post Company |