ACLU of Southern California Asks Judge to Order U.S. to Assist in the Search
LOS ANGELES — Pedro Guzman is still missing in
Mexico, one week
after a lawsuit was filed seeking government help in the search for the
29-year-old mentally impaired man illegally deported May 11. The ACLU of
Southern California and law firm Van Der Hout, Brigagliano & Nightingale
have asked that government agents assist in the search and request help from
Mexican authorities, two steps the
U.S. has so far
refused to take.
In a court hearing Wednesday, a federal judge declined
to order the
U.S. to assist
in the family’s search. But in legal papers filed Friday, the dean of
Yale
Law
School urged the court to order the
government into action.
U.S. District Court Judge George King asked the
government to respond by 2 p.m. today
and indicated he may order a hearing.
Pedro Guzman's mother, brothers
and sister-in-law returned to
Tijuana last Friday to continue the
search, now in its fifth week. The family distributed posters with a photo of
Mr. Guzman and met with volunteers who work among
Tijuana's homeless community. His
mother, Maria Carbajal, remained there today.
Without immediate action
from U.S. agents
in Mexico,
"Pedro Guzman will not be found," ACLU of Southern California Legal Director
Mark Rosenbaum told the court last Wednesday. "It would be the right thing to
do, it would be the moral thing to do," District Court Judge Dean Pregerson
said.
The government admitted in court last Wednesday that Guzman is a
U.S. citizen,
which it had previously disputed. The judge asked that a "lookout," or missing
persons report, sent to
U.S. ports of
entry and the
U.S. consulate
in Tijuana state that he is a
citizen and mention his disability.
While the
U.S. government
has not actively joined the search, the Salvation Army has offered volunteers to
assist the family. "The Salvation Army has done more for my family than the
U.S.
government," Pedro Guzman's younger brother Michael Guzman told reporters last
week.