Thread: $41 mil migrant death suit marches toward deadline

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepubli ... uit22.html

$41 mil migrant death suit marches toward deadline



Susan Carroll
Republic Nogales Bureau
May. 22, 2004 12:00 AM

NOGALES - Nearly three years after 14 migrants perished in the deadliest border crossing in Arizona history, a $41 million lawsuit filed on family members' behalf is still working its way through the federal court system.

U.S. District Judge John M. Roll gave the attorney representing the families until July 9 to gather evidence to show whether the defendants, the U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, failed to take proper steps before denying a petition to place water stations in the desert for undocumented immigrants.

The government will have until Aug. 6 to gather evidence for its motion to dismiss the lawsuit, according to court records.

The lawsuit has generated controversy in the legal community and among activists on opposite sides of the immigration issue. While those who support the water stations say the lawsuit could set a precedent that helps save lives, opponents argue it could undermine the government's ability to secure the border.

The lawsuit, filed in Tucson on behalf of the families of 11 of the 14 migrants who died in May 2001, alleges the government was negligent for denying a request from Humane Borders, a Tucson-based humanitarian organization that builds and maintains water stations.

The request, filed about a month before the deaths, sought approval for stations in the "exact location where the plaintiffs died," according to the lawsuit.

At issue now is whether the Fish and Wildlife Service issued its denial to the request without doing a "compatibility determination," to measure the impact the station could have on the habitat.

Also in question, according to the court filing, is whether the compatibility study would have been completed in time to put the water stations up before the migrants died.

The plaintiffs' attorney, A. James Clark, and a spokeswoman with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Phoenix were unavailable for comment on the lawsuit.

The migrants died after a five-day hike through an inhospitable stretch of desert in the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge east of Yuma.

The bodies of the Mexican men, most from the coastal state of Veracruz, were recovered from the desert on May 23 and May 24, 2001, after a massive search and rescue mission. Twelve members of the group survived the crossing.

The lawsuit, which seeks $3.75 million for each of the victims' families, has proven controversial.

The lawsuit, which seeks $3.75 million for each of the victims' families, has proven controversial.

Gee, I wonder why. Talk about your gall. These illegals learn fast. Find an ambulance chasing lawyer and sue someone with deep pockets for your own stupidity and incompetence. It's the American way.

It isn't as if we, or our government, invited them to come here....nor is it as if they don't know the risks before they make the decision to leave their homes and head out for greener pastures that belong to someone else.

It isn't as if I'm callus toward their deaths...but the outcome for some is too predictable.

They're trying to lay on the shoulders of the taxpayers a false responsibility. I mean...who told them that there would be water stations? someone to do a S&R on their behalf...if not their own nation...why ours??

RR

Can we deport that lawyer?