Thread: Plea bargaining continues

Plea bargaining continues


Vanessa Delgado, (Bio) vdelgado@greeleytribune.com
January 19, 2007


After the Weld District Attorney’s office signaled it would offer plea bargains to 18 former Swift workers taken during a raid at Swift & Co. last month, so far seven have waived their preliminary hearings and rescheduled depositions for mid-February.

Defense Attorney Brain Connors said it’s likely many of the detainees will opt for the deal offered by Weld District Attorney Ken Buck, and waiving the preliminary hearing leaves that option open.

The deal gives detainees the chance to leave voluntarily and possibly avoid prison. But in doing so, the person is also agreeing not to re-enter the United States.

If the person does come back, it would be a federal crime because he or she was deported due to criminal activity. The person could face an eight- to 10-year sentence in federal prison.

The remaining detainees who were offered plea bargains are scheduled to appear in court on various dates, including today, though early February.

If the workers don’t want to accept the deals, they can take their cases to trial. The workers are charged with identity theft, a class 4 felony. Others are charged with criminal impersonation, a class 5 felony.

Teodoro Pelico of Fort Morgan, who waited in court Thursday, said if his son chooses to go back to Guatemala voluntarily, his son’s wife and their two children will go as well. Since the raid, Pelico’s son, Hamilton Victor Pelico-Vicente, has only been able to contact his family by phone.

Pelico-Vicente, along with the other detainees, have not been able to post bond because Immigration and Customs Enforcement has no-bond holds on them in the Weld County Jail.

“My son is not a robber, he is just here to work,” Pelico said. “What people don’t understand is that we are coming from a country where there is no peace and all there is, is crime and no work.”

Pelico knows that the information his son was using was incorrect, and added the country should amend its immigration policies to make it possible for more people to work here legally.

“That is one of the injustices of this country,” Pelico said. “We come here in peace.”


http://www.greeleytribune.com/article/2 ... S/70119008

“My son is not a robber, he is just here to work,” Pelico said. “What people don’t understand is that we are coming from a country where there is no peace and all there is, is crime and no work.”

Yet you can't even obey the laws in this land. You are no better than the criminals in your own land. So Mr Peaceful Hardworker, how many American citizens ID's have you stolen to gain that job that many claim we won't do?

I love the way they keep trying to say it is America's job to make everything easier for them and all the while they are breaking our laws and than whining when they get caught. As far as I am concerned they are fleeing a corrupt country, coming to ours and corrupting it! I say , Times up, get back across the border BUCKO!

Amen, I'm sick of the sob stories for these criminals, yet our own citizens are made out to be like criminals if god forbid they try to defend the nations from these miscreants.

What about the American workers you are displacing. Your broke our laws and THAT MAKES YOU A CRIMINAL. Please give this man the definition of a criminal!

One of the inane comments by a local columnist/blogger was that these people may have stolen IDs, but that should be forgiven because they only used them to work, and there is no work for them in Mexico. Someone responded that in that case, she could steal somebody's car and it would be ok if she only drove it to work.

But we know that in some cases debts and medical bills were run up with the stolen IDs. In most cases, the victims found themselves in hot water with the IRS until they could prove their side of the situation.

Another ramification of using false IDs when seeking medical care is that their ailments can contaminate your record. You may even receive jaundiced scrutiny by your insurer, or find yourself uninsurable or with a pre-existing condition should you switch employers. This is especially true if the thief gets tests or treatments that suggest that you are engaging in 'risky' behavior. You can be denied treatment options based on a history of conditions you've never suffered from. If there is something especially loathesome in your record, it can affect the way you are treated in a hospital or clinic. One man was treated coldly while in for surgery, and found out there was drug abuse listed erroneously on his record.

BestyRoss wrote:

One of the inane comments by a local columnist/blogger was that these people may have stolen IDs, but that should be forgiven because they only used them to work, and there is no work for them in Mexico

.

OUTRAGEOUS!!! To say something like that without a second thought about the stolen ID victims and the long periods of time it takes them to get their lives back. What has happened to this country when the TRUE victims are ignored and people have misplaced sympathy for those who are perpetrating the crimes?

Teodoro Pelico of Fort Morgan, who waited in court Thursday, said if his son chooses to go back to Guatemala voluntarily, his son’s wife and their two children will go as well.

Fantastic, that takes care of 4! Have a nice trip. Now let's do the rest.

“My son is not a robber, he is just here to work,” Pelico said. “What people don’t understand is that we are coming from a country where there is no peace and all there is, is crime and no work.”

Yeah, he's not a "robber". What about the identity you stole? And the taxes that you didn't pay on those earnings and had charged to the SS # holder???

You know, it is no wonder the son is a criminal. The father, very likely, taught him that if you really need something it is okay to steal it because he is still excusing him and trying to say our laws are not fair because his kid got busted. Yeah we really need more people like that here.