Thread: Tancredo proposes meeting with jailed Border Patrol agent

http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/T ... credo.html

Tancredo proposes meeting with jailed Border Patrol agent
By Klaus Marre
Feb 7, 2007
Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) said Wednesday that he does not trust reports from the Federal Bureau of Prisons regarding an incident involving jailed Border Patrol agent Ignacio Ramos, and the lawmaker is demanding a face-to-face meeting with Ramos.

The former Border Patrol agent reportedly was attacked by fellow inmates at a federal prison in Mississippi, where Ramos is serving an 11-year sentence for shooting at a suspected drug smuggler near the U.S.-Mexico border.

While Tancredo maintains that Ramos was "severely beaten," a prison official released a statement saying that he had reported an assault but that medical staff only found minor injuries.

In a letter to Federal Bureau of Prisons Director Harley Lappin, the lawmaker said prison officials "have been trying to downplay the incident," noting that Ramos's family disputes the official account.

"I am not confident that the Bureau has been forthcoming with the public or with members of Congress about the attack on Mr. Ramos," Tancredo said.

"There is also some concern that Mr. Ramos has not yet seen a doctor, and has received only a cursory examination by a nurse," he added. "Moreover, the Bureau has still not offered an explanation as to how this attack on Mr. Ramos (a high-profile, high-risk inmate and a former law enforcement officer) was allowed to happen less than one month after he reported to prison."

The case of Ramos and fellow former Border Patrol agent Jose Alonso Compean has become a rallying cry for groups and lawmakers that are seeking tougher border enforcement and controls on immigration.

They say the Bush administration sided in the case with a drug smuggler over two officers doing their duty of protecting the border.

"Not only did the administration choose the side of a foreign dope runner over the agents who stopped him from smuggling a load of drugs into the country - now they've failed to protect that agent while his case is on appeal," Tancredo said Tuesday.

Nearly 300,000 signatures have been collected for a petition asking President Bush to pardon the two officers, and several House Republicans, including Tancredo, have joined the call.

The lawmaker now wants to meet in person with Ramos this week.

"I want to discuss the circumstances of the attack as well as the examination and treatment received after the attack with him directly," he said. "I also want to talk with him about whether or not he believes a transfer to another facility might be the most prudent way to protect his rights and safety while his case is on appeal."

Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) said Wednesday that he does not trust reports from the Federal Bureau of Prisons regarding an incident involving jailed Border Patrol agent Ignacio Ramos, and the lawmaker is demanding a face-to-face meeting with Ramos
__________________________________________________ _____________


GEE i wonder why there is no trust when it comes to Ramos and Compean..
Could it be that this is just another part of the feds lame attempt to hide stuff?? Hmmmm