In developing arguments in the custody case of the Cuban girl whose parents want her to return to Cuba, the case is getting heated.
From what I saw on TV, I believe the father is being penalized for being Cuban. One of the questions was "why didn't you send your child a birthday present for her 4th birthday". Another one was "why don't you send more pictures of yourself for your daughter to have". HUH????
I don't think the Judge is aware of how difficult it is for a Cuban in Cuba to make ends meet.
If you have the camera, then you don't have the film or the batteries. When you are lucky enough to have all this, when you take the film to develop, the store doesn't have paper. I lost count as to how many films I have developed for Cubans.
Another thing not on his side is this man is not very educated. Whenever he is asked a question, he becomes defensive and loud which to a trained American ear, means guilty.
I don't think the Court understands that Cuban Guajiros just talk that way. All you have to do is listen to Fidel speak and that's that!
This man is going to have a hard time convincing this Judge he is a fit parent. I feel bad for him because he is in an environment completely out of his league.
""Is Cuban father being penalized for being "Cuban"?
No....I think he's being penalized for being a dumb-do.
You're right about the Judge....she has no clue.
Pepin Gatiesa Wrote:""Is Cuban father being penalized for being "Cuban"?
No....I think he's being penalized for being a dumb-do.
You're right about the Judge....she has no clue.
Pobre dumbass. Today, he broke down in Court crying. He was a bit hysterical. I will see it on the news tonight since it was billed as a "highlight" for tonight's news. Can't wait.
The Judge has absolutely NO CLUE what goes on in Cuba. She is judging this Guy by Americanized Family Standards and doesn't realize it is very difficult to even get a phone call into Cuba. Forget about stinking presents and pictures. No es facil.....
oops, hit the wrong buttons too soon. Here is the article I wanted to post
Cuban dad asked in court about sex life - 09/11/2007 - MiamiHerald.com
CHILD CUSTODY CASE
Cuban dad asked in court about sex life
Birthday cards, presents and a father's sex life: A Cuban father spends his third day on the witness stand fielding questions about his relationships.
Posted on Tue, Sep. 11, 2007Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email
BY CAROL MARBIN MILLER
JOHN VANBEEKUM / MIAMI HERALD STAFF
Rafael Izquierdo answers questions from Florida Department Children & Families attorney Jason Dimitris during the juvenile dependency hearing.
On the third day of his testimony, Rafael Izquierdo got grilled Monday on his sex life.
On the witness stand for more than 20 hours over three days, Izquierdo was asked Monday to name all the women with whom he had ever been ''intimate.'' A malanga and pig farmer from Cabaiguan in Central Cuba, Izquierdo is in a downtown Miami courtroom seeking custody of his 5-year-old daughter.
Opposing him is the Florida Department of Children & Families and the Guardian-ad-Litem Program in Miami. Attorneys for the agencies say Izquierdo is unfit to raise the girl because, among other things, he allowed her to emigrate to the United States with a mother he knew was emotionally unstable.
Attorneys for DCF and the guardian program are asking a Miami judge to order that the 5-year-old remain permanently in the home of Joe and Maria Cubas, the Coral Gables couple who have cared for her the past 18 months. The little girl celebrated her fifth birthday this weekend at the Cubas home.
During questioning by Shelby Tsai, an attorney with the law firm Hogan & Hartson who is representing the guardian program, Izquierdo was peppered with queries about the women with whom he married or had been intimate with in Cuba.
Izquierdo said he considered himself married to both Elena Perez, the 5-year-old's mother, and Yanara Alvarez, the mother of his 7-year-old daughter, with whom he now lives. He said he also had a marriage-like relationship with another woman.
''You had at least three intimate relationship?'' Tsai asked.
''Yes. Married like that. Yes,'' Izquierdo replied.
''Apart from [the three], have you had intimate relationships with any other women?'' Tsai asked.
''That I remember, I have not had any other intimate relationships,'' Izquierdo answered.
When Tsai persisted, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Jeri B. Cohen interrupted.
''Is there a point to this?'' the judge asked.
''Impeachment, your honor,'' Tsai said.
''If he went out with other women and had sex with them, I don't care,'' the judge said.
The morning began with Tsai questioning Izquierdo about efforts he made to keep in touch with the little girl after she left Cuba for Miami in March 2006. Attorneys for the state say Izquierdo cared so little about his daughter that he failed to send birthday cards, letters or presents.
''You've recorded cassettes of your singing, yet you never sent a single one of those tapes to [your daughter], did you?,'' Tsai asked, noting that Izquierdo had testified he liked to sing.
''Never,'' the father said.
''You could have told a good night story, and put that on tape, couldn't you?'' Tsai asked.
``Yes. It's true that I did not send them.''
''Didn't you want [her] to hear your voice more?'' Tsai continued.
''I wanted my daughter to know everything,'' Izquierdo said. ``But the idea did not occur to me.''
When Tsai asked Izquierdo why he never called the girl after he came to Miami in May, she ran afoul of the judge.
''I think that's an extremely unfair question,'' Cohen said. ``If he had called on his own, you would have been screaming.''
Both DCF and the guardian program have sought repeatedly, the judge said, to limit Izquierdo's court-approved visits with his daughter. Several of the visits have generated controversy in court.
''He can answer the question,'' the judge said, 'but I think this is a case of `You're darned if you do, and darned if you don't.' ''
Oh me goodness. They are killing this guy. Who gives a crap how many relationships the guy has had?
What the Court system also fails to understand is that in Cuba, when a couple is living together, in their mind, they consider themselves husband and wife.
Whenever I did a closing for a recently arrived Cuban, my first question was, "Are you LEGALLY married?" Florida is a Homestead state so that question is very important for property distribution in case of a divorce.
Some father are more expressive than others. I think the last time my father gave me a present was about 8 years ago.
People raised in Cuba within the last 50 years do not put as much emphasis on presents as people here in the USA.
Maybe he should go on Cuban sponsored TV channels, like the girl's' mother and ask for money. When I saw her on TV begging the Cuban Community to help her support her children, I was floored.
I think the Cuban community in Miami had enough with Elian to last them a lifetime. Homey ain't playing that game again.