U.S. Ordered to Turn Over Papers
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: February 26, 2009

A judge has ordered the federal government to turn over documents related to the shooting of a fleeing drug smuggler or to explain why it is withholding them. The shooting led to the imprisonment of two Border Patrol agents and later a commutation of their sentences by President George W. Bush. The judge, Richard Leon of Federal District Court, acted in response to a suit by Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, which got no response from the Departments of State, Justice and Homeland Security after filing Freedom of Information Act requests two years ago for records relating to the smuggler, Osvaldo Aldrete Davila. Judicial Watch says it wants the government’s records to answer questions about the prosecution of the agents and how regularly the Justice Department offers immunity to drug smugglers to help prosecute law enforcement officers.

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