Sold As a Child Sex Slave, Framed For Murder, Now Fighting Deportation... Will Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Come to Her Rescue?
The Maria Suarez case is “one of the most egregious instances of Battered Woman Syndrome that [the BPT] has ever investigated.â€
- The California Board of Prison Terms
LOS ANGELES, CA., April 4, 2007 - Maria Suarez entered the U.S. legally from Mexico at the age of 16. Two weeks later, she was lured from her home by an unknown woman and sold to a 68-year-old pedophile, Anselmo Covarrubias, for $200. For over five years, Covarrubias, who was known in his neighborhood as a "brujo" (someone who practiced black magic), enslaved Maria and repeatedly raped, battered, and physically, emotionally and spiritually tortured her.
In 1981, Covarrubias was beaten to death by a man who rented one of his houses after he began harassing the man's wife and child. After hearing her captor scream her name, Maria ran outside and witnessed Covarrubias being murdered. The killer ordered Maria to wash the table leg he used as a weapon and hide it under the house. Maria did what she was told. When the police arrived, the killer and his wife implicated Maria in the crime. After years of extreme trauma, and not understanding English or the US judicial system, Maria was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder.
Maria served 22 1/2 years in prison for a crime she did not commit.
The killer and his wife later admitted that Maria was innocent. In addition, the attorney that represented Maria wrote a letter to The Board of Prison Terms, 20 years into her sentence, stating that he completely misrepresented Maria. This was his first criminal trial, and he admitted that while he was working on her trial he was consumed by issues of his own personal trial, as he had recently been convicted of a felony of drug trafficking. He was subsequently sentenced and disbarred. The foreman of the jury that tried her case, as well as several of the other jurors also stated that they were not given the option to just convict her of a lesser charge for disposing of the weapon, and that they regret their verdict.
While in prison, Maria learned English, earned her GED, enrolled in college-level courses, and contributed to numerous volunteer programs. Three lawyers, Jessica Dominguez, Charles Song and Brigit Alvarez came together to fight for Maria's release. After two decades of incarceration, the Board of Prison Terms (BPT) determined that Maria was the victim of extreme violence, abuse, and torture at the hands of Covarrubias and recommended her release.
They called Maria's case “one of the most egregious instances of Battered Woman Syndrome that [the BPT] has ever investigated.†Unfortunately, evidence of battering and its effects were not allowed into evidence at the time of Maria's trial.
When Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger came into office in 2004, he granted her parole, but she was still not home free. Immigration laws amended in 1996 provide for the deportation of long-term, legal permanent residents who have been convicted of crime. This amendment mandates that persons wrongly convicted of a crime in America must still be deported. As a consequence, Maria was released from prison only to be detained for deportation by the Department of Homeland Security.
Finally, in May of 2004 she was granted a temporary T-Visa for victims of Human Trafficking, and was able to begin her life with her family for the first time in 27 years in America.
But her nightmare is not over yet. Maria’s visa expires in May 2007, at which time she will again be subject to deportation because of her conviction for a crime she did not commit. Her lawyers Charles Song (C.A.S.T. - Coalition to Abolish Slave Trafficking) and Jessica Dominguez are still working diligently to obtain a full and unconditional pardon from the Governor or a writ of habeas corpus, and have petitioned the Board of Immigration Appeals to dismiss or reduce the charges against her and allow her to stay in the U.S. as a permanent resident after expiration of the T-visa.
So far their appeals so far have been fruitless.
California Representative Hilda Solis (D- El Monte) was a great help in getting Maria a T-Visa when she and 31 other members of congress signed a letter to Tom Ridge and Undersecretary for Border and Transportation, Asa Hutchinson, urging them to help Maria stay in the US.
Solis believes it was the result of lobbying and publicity that ultimately helped Maria receive her first reprieve from deportation. Maria's supporters hope the media and the community will once again come together to help fight for Maria's freedom.
We are urging Governor Schwarzenegger to grant a full, unconditional pardon to Maria Suarez, a victim of sexual slavery and pedophilia who was wrongfully convicted for the death of her trafficker so she can live a life of freedom and heal from the trauma of years of abuse.
Unless she is granted a full and unconditional pardon, Maria will remain on parole for a crime she did not commit, continue to be treated like a convicted criminal, and in May 2007, when her T-Visa expires she will be deported to Mexico, where she will once again be separated from her family and friends and suffer other mental, emotional and physical extreme hardships.
Maria's legal team is convinced that if Governor Schwarzenegger reviews her record and meets with her, that the Governor would find Maria's case worthy of a full and unconditional pardon.
Maria Suarez lives with her sister and mother in Los Angeles and attends college to become a social worker to assist other trafficking victims. She currently works with victims of abuse as well as convicted abusers and sex offenders who are court ordered to receive counseling. She has become an outspoken advocate of rights for survivors of trafficking and battered women – speaking in national conferences, legislative hearings and media events.
For media requests contact spokesperson for Maria Suarez:
Tina Malave at [email protected]
