USA Today - 05.11.2019

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An asylum-seeking migrant de-

tained by Immigration and Customs

Enforcement was pulled off life sup-

port after his relatives said they re-

quested that doctors continue the life-

saving measures.

More than a month later, the man’s

body remains in the USA, his relatives

said they have been given little infor-

mation about his death, and his broth-

er has twice been denied a visa to trav-

el to the USA to identify the body and

accompany it back home to Cameroon.

Nebane Abienwi, 37, a father of six

who fled his country this summer, died

Oct. 1 after suffering a “medical emer-

gency” while being detained at the

Otay Mesa Detention

Center, a U.S. Immigra-

tion and Customs En-

forcement (ICE) facility

in San Diego, according

to ICE.

Abienwi’s youngest

brother said he has

been scrambling be-

tween U.S. embassies in South Africa

and Cameroon, pleading for a visa to

travel to California to get some an-

swers.

He said he wants to make sure it’s

really his brother’s body and to per-

form cultural rites on the body before

the casket is sealed. He wants to know

why doctors removed the ventilator

that kept his brother breathing after he

asked them to keep it in place until a

relative could arrive.

“We did not approve that,” said

Abienwi’s brother Akongnwi, who re-

quested he be identified only by his

last name out of fear his family would

face repercussions in Cameroon. “One

hundred percent, we did not.”

Akongnwi, speaking from a hotel

room in Cameroon on Monday, said he

spoke by phone with ICE officials sev-

eral times Sept. 30, when they first

called to say his brother had become

critically ill and was on a ventilator. He

said the ICE officials passed the phone

to Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center

officials, who explained that a ventila-

tor was the only thing keeping his

brother breathing.

Akongnwi said he shared the infor-

mation with his brother’s wife and

others in the family, and they all

agreed Abienwi should be maintained

on life support until a relative could be

by his side.

In a statement, ICE said it was re-

viewing Abienwi’s death, as it does all

other deaths in ICE facilities, to ensure

that officials acted in accordance with

all of its policies and standards.

Migrant in

ICE facility

taken off

life support

Alan Gomez

USA TODAY

Abienwi

More than 400 inmates in Oklahoma
were to be released Monday after a law
signed this year retroactively reduced
the sentences for individuals who com-
mitted low-level crimes.
The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole
Board approved the commutation of
462 inmatesunanimously, and on Fri-
day, Gov. Kevin Stitt’soffice has proc-
essed the recommendations for final
approval. It is the largest mass commu-
tation – or reduction of a sentencing – in
U.S. history. President Barack Obama
released 330 federal prisoners on his
last day of office.
In 2016, referendums passed in Okla-

homa made simple drug possession a

misdemeanor instead of a felony and

raised the threshold of felony property

crimes – including theft, vandalism,

shoplifting and robbery – up to $1,000.

Earlier this year, Stitt, a Republican,

signed a law that would apply these

changes retroactively for current in-

mates.

“This event is another mark on our

historic timeline as we move the needle

in criminal justice reform, and my ad-

ministration remains committed to

working with Oklahomans to pursue

bold change that will offer our fellow cit-

izens a second chance while also keep-

ing our communities and streets safe,”

Stitt said in a statement Friday.

The board considered 814 eligible

cases, and 527 were recommended

for a lesser penalty given the severity

of those crimes. Sixty-fiveof those

are still held on detainers.

“With this vote, we are fulfilling

the will of Oklahomans,” said Steven

Bickley, the executive director of the

Pardon and Parole Board. “However,

from day one, the goal of this project

has been more than just the release

of low level, nonviolent offenders,

but the successful reentry of these

individuals back into society.”

Oklahoma will save nearly $12 mil-

lionby releasing these low-level of-

fenders, as opposed to keeping them

incarcerated.

Contributing: The Associated

Press

462 inmates to be released at once, most ever

Joshua Bote
USA TODAY

NEW YORK – President Donald
Trump’s fight to shield his tax returns
and financial records from a local prose-
cutor was rejected by a federal appeals
court Monday, sending the case to an
expected showdown in the Supreme
Court.
In a unanimous, narrowly-drawn de-
cision, the New York-based U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected
claims by Trump’s lawyers that U.S.
presidents have absolute immunity
from grand jury investigations of crimi-
nal conduct until the end of
their terms. Trump’s law-
yers had claimed total im-
munity applies even if a
president were suspected
of shooting someone.
A three-judge appeals
panel said the case did not
require the court to consid-
er whether the president is
legally shielded from in-
dictment and prosecution
while in office, nor whether
the chief executive may be
required to produce rec-
ords for use in a state criminal proceed-
ing.
Instead, the judges said the only
question to be resolved was whether a
state may lawfully demand eight years
of a president’s tax records from a third
party for a grand jury investigation
while the president is in office.
On that point, the judges ruled
against Trump.
“The President has not been charged
with a crime. The grand jury investiga-
tion may not result in an indictment

against any person, and even if it does,

it is unclear whether the President will

be indicted,” Chief Judge Robert Katz-

mann wrote in a decision for the panel.

“Even assuming, without deciding,

that a formal criminal charge against

the President carries a stigma too great

for the Constitution to tolerate, we can-

not conclude that mere investigation is

so debilitating,” he added.

A decision upholding Trump’s claim

of absolute immunity even from a crimi-

nal investigation during his term of of-

fice would “exact a heavy toll on our

criminal justice system,” Katzmann

wrote.

The ruling noted that

then-U.S. Chief Justice

John Marshall upheld a

subpoena to President

Thomas Jefferson while

presiding over the prosecu-

tion of Aaron Burr on trea-

son charges, a case that

ended with a not guilty ver-

dict.

Similarly, the judges

cited the Supreme Court’s

rejection of President Rich-

ard Nixon’s immunity

argument against a sub-

poena that required him to produce tape

recordings and documents about con-

versations with key aides for use during

criminal trials against those aides.

Because Trump has not demonstrat-

ed he’s likely to prevail in the case and

hasn’t raised “sufficiently serious ques-

tions” about the merits of his immunity

claim, the judges ruled he was not enti-

tled to a preliminary injunction blocking

the investigation.

Jay Sekulow, Trump’s lawyer, said

the presidential legal team will petition

the Supreme Court to review the rul-

ing.

“The issue raised in this case goes to

the heart of our Republic,” he said in a

written statement. “The constitutional

issues are significant.”

The office of Manhattan District At-

torney Cyrus Vance, who sought the

tax returns from Trump’s longtime ac-

counting firm, declined to comment on

the decision.

The judges also overturned the por-

tion of a lower court ruling that dis-

missed Trump’s lawsuit on a jurisdic-

tional issue between federal and state

courts.

They sent the case back to the U.S.

District Court for the Southern District

of New York for further proceedings,

though they noted the district court

and attorneys on both sides may wish

to consider whether any further pro-

ceedings are necessary.

Vance won’t get access to Trump’s

tax returns anytime soon. Lawyers for

both sides agreed to a 10-day delay of

any effort by Vance to enforce the sub-

poena. During that time, a petition for

Supreme Court review is to be filed, in-

cluding a request that the court con-

siders the case before the current term

ends next summer.

Raising sweeping constitutional is-

sues, the case marks the first legal test

of whether sitting presidents may be

targeted by criminal investigations

through the court process.

The legal battle poses high personal

and political stakes for Trump, who is

also fighting to keep his tax returns

and financial records away from con-

gressional committees.

Contributing: David Jackson, Rich-

ard Wolf

Court: Prosecutor may

seek Trump’s tax returns

Kevin McCoy
USA TODAY

“The issue

raised in this

case goes to the

heart of our

Republic.”

Jay Sekulow

lawyer for

President Donald Trump

her support for Trump.
“He said, you know, you need to go
big or go home,” Yovanovitch said. “You
need to, you know tweet out there that
you support the president and that all
these are lies and everything else.”
Yovanovitch ultimately decided not
to heed Sondland’s advice.
“It was advice that I did not see how I
could implement in my role as an am-
bassador and as a foreign service offi-
cer,” she said.
Yovanovitch said Sondland may not
have used the words “support President
Trump” in urging the tweet, but his
meaning was clear.
Yovanovitch said Sondland told her:
“You know the president. Well, maybe
you don’t know him personally, but you
know, you know, the sorts of things that
he likes. You know, go out there battling
aggressively and, you know, praise him
or support him.”

‘Less of these jokers’

Under fire from Trump Jr. and con-
servative media, Yovanovitch had urged
the State Department to issue a strong
statement of support for her. But the de-
partment declined because any state-
ment could be undercut by a presiden-
tial tweet, she said.
“If you have the president’s son say-
ing, you know, we need to pull these
clowns, or however he referred to me, it
makes it hard to be a credible ambassa-
dor in a country,” Yovanovitch said.
The president’s son criticized Yovano-
vitch in a tweet March 24, saying the
country needed “less of these jokers as

ambassadors.” He posted a link to an ar-

ticle about growing calls to remove Yova-

novitch, who was referred to as former

President Barack Obama’s ambassador.

Republicans have noted that Trump

can replace any ambassador at any time

because they are appointed. But Yova-

novitch said she warned John Sullivan,

the deputy secretary of state, that her

ouster could send a signal to Ukraine

and other countries that ambassadors

could be removed because of influence

from private people.

Michael McKinley, a former senior

adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pom-

peo, told lawmakers Yovanovitch’s re-

call had a “significant effect on morale”

among Foreign Service officers, accord-

ing to the transcript of his testimony.

McKinley quit his post on Oct. 11, days

before he testified. He said the timing of

his resignation was the result of the

“failure” of the State Department to

support Foreign Service employees en-

tangled in the impeachment inquiry,

specifically Yovanovitch, as well as

“what appears to be the utilization of

our ambassadors overseas to advance

domestic political objectives.”

McKinley, who served as a diplomat

for more than 35 years with roles in Af-

ghanistan, Brazil and other countries,

told lawmakers many viewed the State

Department under Trump “as broken

and demoralized.”

Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the top Re-

publican on the House Oversight Com-

mittee, attacked Democrats for releas-

ing just these two transcripts and criti-

cized the process of the hearings, which

are scheduled to continue behind closed

doors this week. Democrats have said

they plan to release the remainder of the

approximately 100 hours of deposition

transcripts from the 13 witnesses who

testifiedand plan to start public hear-

ings as early as this month.

Jordan downplayed the concerns

about Giuliani’s efforts in Ukraine and

the campaign that sought to have Yo-

vanovitch removed, noting that

Ukraine’s president also appeared on

board with replacing her.

“As I’ve said before, the fundamen-

tal facts have never changed and will

never change,” Jordan said. “We’ve

seen the transcript; everyone’s been

able to read it. That’s the best evidence

that nothing, no quid pro quo, no kind

of conditions, were ever in play.”

‘Absolutely’ immune

Meanwhile, an attorney for John

Eisenberg, the National Security

Council’s lawyer, notified lawmakers

that Eisenberg wouldn’t show up Mon-

day for his deposition.

A three-page letter from the Justice

Department’s Office of Legal Counsel

analyzed Eisenberg’s role at the White

House and concluded he was “abso-

lutely immune from compelled con-

gressional testimony in his capacity as

a senior adviser to the President.”

The whistleblower who raised

alarms about the president’s dealings

with Ukraine is willing to answer writ-

ten questions submitted by House Re-

publicans, the person’s lawyer says.

But Trump says that’s not good

enough. “He must be brought forward

to testify. Written answers not accept-

able!” Trump tweeted, slamming the

entire process as a “Con!”

The testimony offer, made over the

weekend to Rep. Devin Nunes, the top

Republican on the Intelligence Com-

mittee, followed escalating attacks by

Trump and his GOP allies who demand

that the whistleblower be identified.

Contributing: The Associated Press

Transcripts

Continued from Page 1A