Thread: Irate Judge Throws Book @ Immigration Official for Smuggling

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Irate judge throws book at smuggler
7 1/2 -year prison term stuns immigration aide
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
BY JOHN P. MARTIN
Star-Ledger Staff

Seething over what he saw as a lackluster acknowledgment of a serious crime, a judge sentenced a former federal immigration inspector yesterday to 7 1/2 years in prison for smuggling at least 100 illegal aliens past airport security checkpoints in Newark and Baltimore.

U.S. District Judge Dennis Cavanaugh also ordered Otis Rackley to begin his term immediately instead of letting him surrender in a few weeks, a courtesy often given to defendants on bail.

The punishment, more than two years longer than the sentence prosecutors recommended, stunned Rackley and his attorney, Anthony J. Fusco Jr., who had expected a prison term half as long. It also reflected the judge's exasperation with the defendant's attitude and with a wave of immigration crimes he said had become of the "most troubling" issues for the courts and the country.

"Who knows what happened to all these illegals -- where they are and what they are doing," Cavanaugh said.

The judge said Rackley repeatedly ignored routine requests to meet with federal probation officials after pleading guilty to bribery last June. He also said he was bothered that Rackley never explained what happened to more than $1 million in kickbacks prosecutors say he collected over three years before his arrest in 2003.

"I don't think Mr. Rackley wants us to know what happened to the $1 million," Cavanaugh said.

As a senior inspector for what was then the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, Rackley wore a gun and a badge and was supposed to protect the borders.

But for nearly three years, prosecutors said, he did the opposite: For between $2,000 and $5,000, Rackley escorted illegal immigrants from airplanes and past checkpoints at Newark Liberty International and Baltimore-Washington International airports. He admitted helping smuggle at least 100 aliens -- mostly Indian nationals -- that way, even after Sept. 11, 2001, and said he helped hundreds of others get passport stamps to stay here.

Five other people, including another immigration inspector, have pleaded guilty to related charges in the case. Prosecutors said Rackley, 41, who moved from Perth Amboy to Pennsylvania two years ago, lived a lavish lifestyle, but that he never accounted for all of the cash.

"His actions disgraced the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Agency," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Resnik, referring to the successor agency to INS. "Mr. Rackley joined forces with the criminals he was supposed to protect us from."

Under his plea deal, Rackley faced between 51 months and 71 months in prison, but prosecutors recommended a lighter term because he agreed to cooperate. Fusco, the defense attorney, said he had hoped for a sentence of about 41 months.

Before the hearing began, Rackley joined hands with relatives and other supporters outside the Newark courtroom and began praying. But it quickly became clear that their prayers would not be answered.

The judge said probation officials had alerted him that they had tried to interview Rackley for nearly a month without success. And Cavanaugh said no one had yet explained where all the money went.

The judge said he was revoking the credit Rackley received under sentencing guidelines for taking responsibility for his crime. That added almost two years to his possible sentencing range. "This gentleman just did not cooperate," he said.

Taken aback, Fusco said he was unaware of the problem with probation officials and insisted Rackley never received all the proceeds from the scheme. "He doesn't have 5 cents of this money," Fusco said.

He urged the judge to postpone the sentencing so he could resolve the issue, but Cavanaugh declined.

"There comes a time when he reached the end of the line," the judge said. "We have reached it now."

Rackley didn't mention the issue when he stood to address the judge, but rather offered a brief apology for his misdeeds. "I've never been in trouble with the law in my life," he said.

When Cavanaugh announced his sentence, Rackley dropped his head. Fusco shook his. After the hearing, the defense attorney said he would probably file an appeal, but he said he was dumbfounded by the sentence.

"All the client had to do was cooperate," Fusco said. "I don't know why he did what he did. It doesn't make any sense."

This judge deserves a commendation medal.
We need a few more like him.