Letter to the Editor: Submitted by Thomas Hill

To the Editor:

Mr. Lowell Engle (in his April 30 letter to the editor) argues we should “stand up for the Constitution and the rights of American citizens.  Support the rule of law.”  Both Ann Hart and I were calling for the same rights, not only for American “citizens,” but for all “persons” in the U.S. as the Fifth Amendment guarantees.

Mr. Engle (and Donald Trump as well) make much of Mr. Garcia’s tattoos, claiming that they prove he is a member of the MS-13 gang. However, a photo of his left hand circulated on social media that shows a marijuana leaf, a smiley face, a cross, and a skull with “M - S – 1 – 3” on his knuckles has been shown to be Photoshopped.

Experts, like Steve Dudley, on MS-13 said that the use of tattoos as displays of affinity to gangs has dropped in recent decades as police have started using them to identify members.

But, in any case, his tattoos are not the issue. His denial of due process is.  As the U.S. Court of Appeals put it: “The government is asserting a right to stash away residents of the country in foreign prisons without the semblance of due process that is the foundation of our constitutional order. . . The government asserts that Abrego Garcia is a terrorist and a member of MS-13. Perhaps, but perhaps not. Regardless, he is still entitled to due process.”  As are the hundreds of other men disappeared into the Gulag in El Salvador.

Thomas Hill
Lansing/Cedar Falls