Published Wednesday, May 10, 2000, in the Miami Herald
Fisherman asks court to appoint attorney for Elian
Dalrymple says legal team has conflict of interest in case
By Ana Acle. aacle@herald.com
In a weird twist on the Elian Gonzalez saga, Donato Dalrymple, the self-declared rescuer of the boy, asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Tuesday to appoint a new attorney to represent Elian because the legal team for the Miami relatives has a conflict of interest in the case.
Dalrymple singled out attorney Kendall Coffey, saying Coffey's ties to the Democratic Party and the fact he was appointed U.S. Attorney for South Florida by Attorney General Janet Reno might color his judgment.
``It's an outrageous statement,'' said attorney Jose Garcia-Pedrosa, another of the Miami relatives' attorneys who ran unsuccessfully against Reno for Dade state attorney in 1984. ``Kendall Coffey has been a magnificent advocate for our position and he continues to be a priceless member of our
team. He does not deserve to be treated this way and to be made the object of such an unjust accusation.''
NO LEGAL STANDING
Dalrymple's petition will have no impact on the case, however. A court clerk said the petition will not be accepted because Dalrymple is not a party in the case and therefore has no legal standing.
But the petition offers some insight into how Dalrymple views himself. A house cleaner, Dalrymple was on his first fishing trip when he and his cousin Sam Ciancio spotted Elian clinging to an inner tube last Thanksgiving.
Since then, he has enjoyed attention from media and supporters of the Miami relatives as the rescuer, though it was actually Ciancio who pulled the boy from the water.
In the petition, he says he now must rescue Elian again.
``I don't fully understand what `standing' means,'' Dalrymple wrote, ``but it seems to me that if anyone has `standing' to point out some facts to this court that you have no other way of knowing and that might help redress a terrible wrong then I am the one to do it.''
``I saved the boy once,'' he noted. ``I'm here before you to save him again.''
FAMILY SURPRISED
The petition's filing surprised Lazaro Gonzalez, Elian's great-uncle.
``He did not consult with anyone on this,'' Gonzalez said, ``and we're the boy's family. He should have talked to the family about this.''
Dalrymple did not return repeated phone calls seeking comment.
Dalrymple drew up the petition with the help of Miami attorney Jack Thompson, who ran unsuccessfully against Janet Reno in 1988 and is known for his crusades against radio personalities Neil Rogers and Howard Stern, and musical acts 2 Live Crew, Ice-T and Madonna.
``Donato and I have talked about this, yes,'' Thompson said.
Thompson, in articles for newsmax.com, an online magazine, has been critical of Coffey and the legal team's handling of the case. Particularly galling to Thompson is a decision by the team not to file a formal challenge of the legality of the raid.
Coffey and other lawyers say such a challenge should wait until after the appeals court rules on whether Elian is qualified to apply for political asylum.
``Those matters must be brought up at the trial level, not the appellate level,'' said Manny Diaz, another attorney for the relatives and Coffey's law partner.
``To imply that we're a clique is nothing further from the truth,'' Diaz said. ``If we had more people on the case, perhaps we wouldn't have so many sleepless nights.''
Pressure easing for hearings
By Frank Davies. fdavies@herald.com
WASHINGTON -- Hearings? What hearings?
Two weeks after blasting the Little Havana raid to seize Elian Gonzalez as an excessive use of force deserving a full investigation, Republican leaders in Congress have backed away from holding hearings on the event and the negotiations that led up to it.
The chairmen of the two judiciary committees -- Orrin Hatch in the Senate, Henry Hyde in the House -- said they are seeking information from the Justice Department on the raid, but may simply examine documents in private meetings.
Hatch postponed hearings, first set for last week, while seeking more documents from Justice and the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
``We're still looking at [holding hearings], but haven't rescheduled them,'' said Jeanne Lopatto, a spokeswoman for the Senate committee, on Tuesday. ``We haven't canceled them either.''
But enthusiasm for a public airing of the Elian Gonzalez case, complete with federal officials and Miami witnesses, has cooled in Congress. Most polls show support for Attorney General Janet Reno's actions, and administration officials, including Reno, have hit TV -- from Nightline to Oprah --
to make their case.
An NBC survey last week found that 62 percent of respondents said they saw no reason for hearings on the raid, compared with 30 percent in favor. Even GOP pollsters are advising party leaders that hearings bring few political benefits. ``This whole case just doesn't have legs outside Miami,''
said Glen Bolger, a Republican pollster for Public Opinion Strategy. ``I don't think it will have much political impact one way or another.''
According to one House GOP staff member close to the leadership, top Republicans are worried that hearings could backfire, giving the perception of another political attack on the Clinton administration.
``Let's just say the image of Janet Reno sitting there calmly while Republicans criticize her and Democrats say it's all political would not be a great help heading into an election campaign,'' said the staff member, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
BUSH SPREADS WORD
The staffer also said that Texas Gov. George W. Bush, the party's presumptive presidential nominee, quietly spread the word, through campaign manager Joe Albaugh on a recent visit to Washington, that a lot of attention to the Elian case would not be a good idea.
No one exemplifies the shift in sentiment better than Rep. Tom DeLay, the Texas Republican and House whip who criticized ``jackbooted thugs'' a few hours after the April 22 raid and promised, ``You bet there will be hearings.''
STEPPING BACK
DeLay, who is close to the Bush presidential campaign, backpedaled in a speech a few days ago to the National Press Club: ``I have to admit I spoke too hastily though the Justice Department's rule by decree and invasion of an American's home is something we have the responsibility to look
into.''
Other Republicans on Capitol Hill insist that the raid was an unwarranted use of force that must be pursued. Sen. Connie Mack of Florida has pushed hard for hearings, and he has allies in the House.
At a contentious meeting of House leaders last week, Rep. J.D. Hayworth of Arizona, a former TV sports anchor, took out his copy of the Constitution and ritualistically ripped out the page with the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits ``unreasonable searches and seizures.''
His point: Reno should be called to account for ``outrageous conduct -- it's despicable.''
``I've got the Constitution in my pocket right now with the page torn out,'' said Hayworth on Tuesday. ``The Fourth Amendment is trashed, gone, if we let this get by.''
Hayworth and other Republicans hope Hyde's preliminary inquiry, or some other committee, will prove to be the right forum to investigate the raid.
If hearings are eventually held, Hatch said he will make sure that ``both sides'' of the legal and political divide are represented. Hatch noted that Laurence Tribe, a respected Harvard law professor and noted liberal, has questioned the raid's legality.
So did a group of 30 well-known political figures, from both the left and right, in an ad Tuesday in The Washington Post. Signers included conservative William F. Bennet, ecnomist Milton Friedman and lawyer Alan Dershowitz.
But Republicans might face another challenge from Democrats. Some want to broaden the scope of any inquiry and focus on immigration issues.
Sens. Bob Graham of Florida and Dianne Feinstein of California said recently that how the INS handles asylum cases, especially those involving children, needs congressional review.
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