II
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2292
To amend the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act
of 1996 to require that, in order to determine that a democratically
elected government in Cuba exists, the government extradite to the
United States convicted felon Joanne Chesimard and all other individuals
who are living in Cuba in order to escape prosecution or confinement
for criminal offenses committed in the United States.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 21, 2001
Mr. ROTHMAN (for himself and Mr. MENENDEZ) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on International Relations
A BILL
To amend the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity
(LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 to require that, in order
to determine that a democratically elected government
in Cuba exists, the government extradite to the United
States convicted felon Joanne Chesimard and all other
individuals who are living in Cuba in order to escape
prosecution or confinement for criminal offenses com-
mitted in the United States.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘No Safe Haven in
Cuba Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) on May 2, 1973, Joanne Chesimard and
two companions, upon being stopped in their vehicle
by New Jersey State Troopers James Harper and
Werner Foerster on the New Jersey Turnpike,
opened fire on these officers, striking Trooper Wer-
ner Foerster in the chest and James Harper in the
left shoulder;
(2) the suspects then used Trooper Foerster’s
own weapon to shoot him twice in the head, killing
him;
(3) in 1977, a properly constituted jury in a
fair trial conducted according to the international
norms of the rule of law, found Ms. Chesimard
guilty of first-degree murder for the slaying of
Trooper Foerster, as a result of which Ms.
Chesimard was legally and properly sentenced to life
imprisonment in a New Jersey State prison;
(4) in 1979, Ms. Chesimard escaped from the
Reformatory for Women in Clinton, New Jersey,
with the help of four men who took a guard and
prison van driver hostage, thereby recklessly placing
the lives of both men in danger;
(5) after escaping prison, Ms. Chesimard fled to
Cuba for the sole purpose of escaping her legally im-
posed life sentence in prison for the murder of
Trooper Foerster;
(6) there are currently approximately 90 other
individuals who have fled from the United States to
Cuba in order to avoid legal prosecution or legally
imposed confinement for serious criminal offenses;
(7) respect for the rule of law is a primary con-
dition for the establishment of any legitimate demo-
cratic government; and
(8) legitimate democratic governments must
show respect for the justice systems of one another
and not provide safe harbor to individuals who have
been legally indicted or convicted of serious offenses.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO LIBERTAD ACT.
Section 206 of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic
Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6066)
is amended—
(1) in paragraph (5) by striking ‘‘and’’ after
the semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (6) by striking the period and
inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(7) has proven its respect for the democratic
rule of law by ceasing to provide a safe harbor to
individuals who have been legally indicted or con-
victed of serious criminal offenses, including con-
victed felon Joanne Chesimard, and all other individ-
uals who have fled from the United States to Cuba
for the sole purpose of avoiding prosecution or con-
finement for serious criminal offenses committed in
the United States.’’.
Æ