Lawyer for Cuban spies vows last-ditch appeal

Boston.com/ By Paul Haven

Thomas Goldstein

HAVANA—A lawyer for five Cuban agents sentenced to long jail terms for spying in the United States said Wednesday he is preparing a last-ditch appeal, arguing that one of the men received bad counsel and that the jury for all five was prejudiced because the U.S. paid several journalists who covered the trial.

Thomas Goldstein said he would submit the appeal on Feb. 15 before U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard, who can either rule on the matter, ask to hear arguments or order a full evidentiary hearing. Four of the men have been jailed since 1998. The fifth, Rene Gonzalez, was released last year after 13 years in jail, but has been ordered to remain in the United States while he serves out his probation.

Gonzalez's lawyer, Phil Horowitz, said he would also appeal that probation decision shortly. He said the 55-year-old dual Cuban-American citizen is working as a caretaker at a private home, but would not reveal the location out of concern for his client's security.

The lawyers were interviewed by The Associated Press in a restricted area of Havana limited to government activities and hosting visiting foreign dignitaries.

While the agents' case is largely forgotten in the United States, it remains a cause celebre in Cuba, where the government hails the "Cuban Five" as heroes who were only trying to detect and prevent violent attacks against their country by exile groups. Cuban state-run media publish near daily accounts of solidarity from around the world, and images of the men stare down from billboards along rutted country roads.

Goldstein said he will argue that inadequate counsel from his lawyer resulted in a murder conviction and life sentence for one of the agents, Gerardo Hernandez, and he said all of their cases were prejudiced by a U.S. government program that was paying thousands of dollars to key journalists while the high-profile trial was going on, a fact that only came out later.

The journalists were paid for appearances on U.S. government radio and TV broadcasts beamed to Cuba, and they also continued to produce stories for independent media outlets.

Advocates for the five also say the trial court was wrong to reject their request for a change of venue from South Florida, which is home to a large Cuban exile community.

"I don't think anyone can deny that it is a serious issue when you try supposed Cuban agents in a Miami court ... and that it obviously is going to be a very political, very fraught trial," Goldstein said. "On top of that, to learn that the media is being paid by the U.S. government, we think raises a serious issue."

Goldstein, a Washington-based Supreme Court litigator, said he would take the case all the way to America's highest court if necessary, and that if the appeal fails, it will mean "the end of the road" for the legal process in the case. After that, he said, the only hope would be a political solution.  More >>