Congress Urges Pollard Release
MIddle East Newsline - June 14, 2012

http://www.menewsline.com/article-1173,26170-Congress-Urges-Pollard-Release.aspx

WASHINGTON [MENL] -- Congress has been mobilized in Israel's campaign to
free U.S. Navy analyst Jonathan Pollard.

Democrats and Republicans have been signing a letter to President Barack
Obama for the commutation of Pollard's life sentence. In 1987, Pollard,
whose plea bargain agreement was rejected by the presiding judge, was
sentenced to life for relaying classified information to Israel, an offense
for which Egyptian and Saudi convicts spent as little as two years in
prison.

"Mr. Pollard has now served more than 25 years in prison, many of which in
solitary confinement, for his actions," the letter said. "There is no doubt
that he has paid a heavy price, and, from the standpoint of either
punishment or deterrence, we believe he has been imprisoned long enough."

The letter was launched by Rep. Eliot Engel and Rep. Christopher Smith and
came amid a campaign by Israel and American Jews to win Pollard's release.
On June 13, Israeli President Shimon Peres presented Obama with a petition
signed by 75,000 Israelis who called for Pollard to be freed.

"Our position has not changed and will not change today," White House
press secretary Jay Carney said on June 13. "I would simply remind you that
Mr. Pollard was convicted of very serious crimes."

This marked the second effort in Congress for Pollard. In 2010, Rep.
Barney Frank circulated a letter that called for Pollard's freedom and
garnered the signatures of 39 members of Congress, all Democrats.

"Mr. Pollard has expressed remorse for his illegal actions, and we believe
the time has come for the president to grant him clemency," the latest
congressional letter said.

Obama has refused to respond to the Pollard campaign except for telling a
Democratic Party contributor in 2011 that he was "being bugged" by clemency
supporters. Over the last two years, a range of former Cabinet secretaries,
senior officials and chairmen in Congress have called for Pollard's release
.
"A number of people convicted of spying for other countries, ranging from
the former Soviet Union to South Korea, have been given lighter sentences
than Mr. Pollard," the congressional letter said.
=

JUSTICE FOR JONATHAN POLLARD
Website: http://www.JonathanPollard.org
Follow J4JP on Twitter:http://twitter.com/J4JPollard
Follow J4JP on Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/justice4jp