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JW Looks to U.S. Supreme Court for Justice Against Reno On December 11, 2003, Judicial Watch filed a petition with the United States Supreme Court asking it to decide whether Janet Reno can be held responsible for ordering a violent raid to seize Elian Gonzalez. During the April 22, 2000 paramilitary raid, peaceful protestors and neighbors were gassed, kicked, beaten and ruthlessly brutalized by armed federal agents. Indeed, many of those gathered in support of Elian Gonzalez were praying silently when federal agents began indiscriminately spraying gas to immobilize the crowd. Furthermore, up until the very moment a convoy of more than 150-armed agents stormed the property, Elian's Miami relatives were on hold with a mediator who was speaking with Janet Reno. The Gonzalez family was desperately trying to negotiate a peaceful end to the stand-off, one that would not cause emotional stress to Elian. Reno, while publicly claiming the Gonzalez family was uncooperative, refused their request. "Federal agents, under the direction of Reno, used brutal and unnecessary force against peaceful protestors," said JW President Tom Fitton. "The raid was more in tune with Communist Cuba than free America. Reno abused her power and she must be punished for the harm she caused." The evidence does, in fact, show that Reno was directly responsible for ordering the attack on Elian's Miami relatives. During a press conference following the raid, Reno admitted, "I commenced [the] operation…I gave the go-ahead for the operation…" A subsequent report issued by the INS also confirmed that "at 5:15 a.m. on Saturday, April 22, 2000, at the direction of the Attorney General, a law enforcement operation was conducted to effect custody of Elian Gonzalez and deliver him to his father." A U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida ruled that Reno can be held personally responsible for ordering the raid. Reno successfully appealed her case to the Atlanta-based Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, claiming immunity, thus rendering Judicial Watch's appeal to the Supreme Court necessary. As Judicial Watch clearly points out in its Supreme Court petition, lower courts cannot dismiss a constitutional claim against a government official simply because the official claims to be "immune" from personal accountability. Victims of the Reno-ordered raid are claiming violations of the First and Fourth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Judicial Watch's petition seeks a Writ of Certiorari, an order issued by the Supreme Court directing the appeals court to transmit records for the Gonzalez case so that the Supreme Court can adjudicate the case. SIDEBAR: Legal Definition: Writ of Certiorari An order issued by the Supreme Court directing the lower court to transmit records for a case for which it will hear on appeal. On December 9, 2003, Judicial Watch filed a new lawsuit in federal court on behalf of the victims of Janet Reno's Nazi-like raid of the home of Elian's Miami relatives. Judicial Watch's case is based on the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which reads: "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
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