Haiti judge: Detained Americans should be released

[cal04]

Source: Washington Post

The Haitian judge deciding whether 10 U.S. missionaries should face trial on charges of trying to take a busload of children out of the country says he will recommend that they be released.

Judge Bernard Saint-Vil finished questioning the Americans on Wednesday. He now must send his recommendation to the prosecutor, who may agree or object.

But the judge has the final authority to decide whether they stay in custody or go free.

Saint-Vil told The Associated Press he will recommend that all 10 be released.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/11/AR2010021100307.html?hpid=moreheadlines

[Joanne98]

1. Hillary working behind the scenes.

[karynnj]

5. I hope not

That really would say that because they desperately need our help, they are forced to ignore the transgressions of any Americans. Taking children without papers out of the country is a really serious action.

Now, if they themselves became satisfied that no harm was intended, ok - but the state department and certainly not the SoS should have been involved. (I would be less concerned if it was an appeal (or money) from their church. )

[Green_Lantern]

8. the Haitian law on this is somewhat crazy..

Even parents need the govt's permission to take their kids out of the country.

[Demeter]

2. Probably the cheapest bailout in the world

buying one Haitian judge. Sunday's collection probably covered it.

[dballance]

3. They Should be Thrown in the Dungen

These people should be fully prosecuted. Letting them off the hook just makes it more likely they'll do "God's work" again in the future. How pathetic.

[Speciesamused]

4. I totally agree.

They where wrong just because they are religious
does not make them above the law. Must set precedent.
You cannot just go around taking children. There is a huge
problem circling the globe in the child sex trade. We must
move forward to stop this type of abuse to help the children
who cannot stand for themselves.

[Green_Lantern]

7. you want them locked up for sex trafficking even without

Evidence they were doing that?

[Green_Lantern]

6. they should be released...

If they had no malicious intent. You got to love the DUers who want these people imprisoned for sex trafficking with zero evidence they were involved in that.

If Haiti can't demonstrate malicious intent these people should be allowed to go home.

[karynnj]

9. I think that many of us simply want their case handled appropriately

Now as to your comment that they should be released if their is no malicious intent - I disagree. If their intention was that they thought the kids would be better off cared for by them and took children with parents dealing with a catastrophe, their intention is not malicious, but the action is wrong.

Intent is important, but actions are more so. That does not mean that I think they were trafficking in kids.

[Green_Lantern]

10. I've read they had the parental permission..

So it wasn't really kidnapping. The issue is Haiti requires the parents to seek govt. approval first.

[karynnj]

11. There still is a problem there

1) These are extreme conditions and these people are desperate

2) Even in the US, I could not sign my daughters, who are over 18 anyway, over to someone else without any legal actions.

3) There were questions about whether that was the case for all the kids.

The fact though is that just as some people you rightfully criticize because they have already "convicted" them of sex trafficking - you are taking their story at face value and are ignoring that the leader was warned by at least two people in positions to know that whet she was doing could get them arrested.

Now, what, if anything, they should be tried for depends on the investigation. All I am saying is that it is wrong to argue that because these people are white, Christian and from Idaho, they should be treated different from say from Haiti or a third country.