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Office of the
National President |
NATIONAL BOARD |
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The Honorable Michael Chertoff
Secretary
Department of Homeland
Security
Washington, DC 20528
Dear Mr. Secretary,
It is with great urgency that
we, the National Board of the Ancient Order of Hibernians in
America, write to you concerning the case of Paul Brennan, a native
of Northern Ireland. Mr. Brennan, previously the subject of a
British Government extradition warrant rescinded in 2000, was held
without bond at the Port Isabel (TX) ICE Detention Center since
January 27, 2008 and is presently in the ICE South Texas Detention
Center.
Mr. Brennan escaped from Long
Kesh Prison in Northern Ireland in 1984 and subsequently entered the
USA. In 1994 he and two other escapees were discovered living in the
San Francisco Bay Area and taken into custody on a British
Government Extradition Warrant. Despite the fact that they were
escapees Mr. Brennan and the others were allowed bail.
The extradition case proceeded
under the warrant for a full six years and throughout that time Mr.
Brennan’s bail was sustained by various proceedings and his full
compliance with bail conditions imposed by the various federal
justice officials. During the six year proceeding Mr. Brennan
surrendered twice when bail was briefly rescinded and a District
Judge actually authorized out of state traveled at times, assured he
was not a flight risk. It is difficult for the A.O.H. National Board
to understand why a reasonable offer of bail has not been made to
Mr. Brennan, considering that the extradition warrant was dropped
against him eight years ago in 2000 and his history of compliance
for six years.
Mr. Brennan does not present a
security risk to the United States and his incarceration serves no
purpose in consideration of the Peace Process in Northern Ireland
and the United States interest in supporting the new government. Mr.
Brennan is married to a citizen of the United States and the
conditions of his entry into the United States in 1984 have been
previously waived.
The A.O.H. National Board
would ask that a reasonable offer of bond be made to Mr. Brennan to
assure his compliance and attendance at subsequent Immigration
Hearings as well as good conduct in the interim. We ask that Mr.
Brennan be allowed to contest the process of removal while being
released on bond. We believe that his history proves that he is
neither a flight risk nor a danger to the USA.
Sincerely,
Seamus Boyle
Seamus Boyle
Questions Please Respond to:
Ned McGinley
AOH Press and Communications
nedaoh1@aol.com
