MYLETTER TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA SENATE – YES ON SB 152

Posted on by — 3 Comments ↓

I am delighted to endorse and support SB 152, a bill that if passed, will restore the right of all South Dakota adopted persons, without restriction, to access their original birth certificates upon request. SB 152 is about rights not reunion. It is about the relation of adoptees to the state. It is about the absolute natural right of identity and the civil right to a true unfalsified birth certificate for all South Dakota adoptees. SB 152 as written is a simple-to-understand measure that recognizes the presumed right of all adults to unrestricted access and ownership of their true birth certificates, not just some. If adoptees are not equal legally to the not-adopted in terms receiving their own birth certificates, then the right of anyone to possess their own birth certificate is not a right but a state favor. SB 152 is inclusive. It acknowledges a legally, morally, and ethically correct one-size fits all standard of identity and records rights for all persons– adopted and not adopted. SB 152 does not change adoption procedures. Adoption records are sealed upon finalization, not relinquishment. If the court denies an adoption petition or the petition is withdrawn, the birth record remains unsealed. If Continue Reading →

IS JORGE PUELLO REALLY JEWISH?

Posted on by — 43 Comments ↓

Accurate personal info, including the religious affiliation, of Jorge Torres Puello is scarce so far, but the question has caught on in the blogosphere: Is Torres Puello really Jewish? Although the relevancy of this question has nothing to do with adoption, the subject of the Daily Bastardette and End Child Exportation and Trafficking…, I’m going to take it on. No reference is made to Torres Puello’s religion in the interview with his mother and stepfather in the Miami Herald (registration required) or CNN. I’ve heard nothing to suggest he was born Jewish. Puello isn’t a Jewish name, but Torres is. His father is reported to be Puerto Rican and if he were Jewish, it wouldn’t make his son Jewish by birth. There are a couple media references saying that Torres Puello is a Jewish convert, but I’ve not seen any genuine documented source on that. If it is true, when did he convert and who did he convert under? Nobody has come forward to claim him. We only “know” Torres Puello is Jewish because (1) he says he’s Jewish and (2) he wears a kippah and talit. I have a talit. Does that make me a Jewish man? When Did Continue Reading →

BASTARD NATION ACTION ALERT: SOUTH DAKOTA SB 152 – UNCONDITIONAL ACCESS TO OBC – VOTE YES!

Posted on by — 1 Comment ↓

BASTARD NATION ACTION ALERTSOUTH DAKOTA SB 152 PLEASE FORWARD FREELY. SB 152, a 100% unconditional open records bill, will be voted upon on the floor of the South Dakota Senate on Tuesday, February 16th. Bastard Nation: The Adoptee Rights Organization, urges everyone to write to the Senators of South Dakota immediately and ask them to vote YES on SB 152, which will give all adoptees equal rights. SB 152 will allow any adoptee 18 years or older to obtain a copy of that person’s original birth certificate upon written application, with no conditions or restrictions. SB 152 is sponsored by Senators Adelstein, Jerstad, and Merchant and Representatives Lederman, Feinstein, Lust, McLaughlin, and Sly.The bill was heard first by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. The only change made in committee was omitting a contact preference form in the bill. It was felt that this form was not necessary to the bill. The Senate committee passed the bill with a vote of 4 to 2. Help make 2010 the year South Dakota goes over the top! Please bombard the senators with your letters of rousing support!. You can read the bill at: http://legis.state.sd.us/sessions/2010/Bill.aspx?File=SB152SHE.htm CONTACT INFORMATION South Dakota has made it Continue Reading →

WHO IS JORGE PUELLO, PT 2: JUMPING DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

Posted on by — 69 Comments ↓

INTERPOL: WANTED JORGE TORRES ORELLANA (Jorge Pulleo)CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN, PEOPLE SMUGGLING, TRAFFICKING & ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION Thanks to everyone commenting and sending tips. They are tremendously helpful. Tomorrow I plan to sit down and go through them carefully. “Plan” being the operative word. The way the story is moving it won’t surprise me if Jorge Puello is picked up in Andorra by then. In the meantime, it’s impossible to keep up and comment cogently on breaking Puello events. The best way is to break the story into chunks, although with so much new news, old news gets tossed aside, at least for now. Today I’m writing about Jorge Puello. Next, unless something big breaks, I’ll give an update on the New Lifers. ***** On February 11, 2010 ((New York Times) we first learned that New Life Children’s Refuge “legal adviser” Jorge Puello, may not be who he claimed to be. As I determined earlier, and the New York Times verified, Puello is not a licensed lawyer in the Dominican Republic. In fact, he’s not a lawyer anywhere. How Puello became the group’s “legal adviser” is still unknown. Updates on that situation will appear in another entry. The article said Jorge Callegas, Continue Reading →

EVIDENCE GROWS AGAINST JORGE PUELLO; RELEASE OF KIDJACKERS MAY BE DELAYED

Posted on by — 14 Comments ↓

Big news popping out of DR tonight. The New York Times reports a growing amount of evidence to connect New Life Children’s Refuge “legal adviser” Jorge Puello to a sex trafficking ring operating in El Salvador. The trafficking suspect, who police believe is Puello, worked with Pablo Nasser, the former deputy director of the Salvadoran Immigration Service to lure foreign girls and women into the country and sell them into prostitution. The latest break comes from two sources: (1) photographs that appear to match Puello and the trafficking suspect and (2) public and court records linking Puello to a Florida address that is tied to the suspect. Hey, I thought Jorge didn’t have a passport! Here’s what the Times says: The Salvadoran police asked their Dominican counterparts on Friday to arrest Mr. Puello. “Dominican authorities should proceed to detain him,” said Augusto Cotto, deputy director of investigations for the Salvadoran police. “If the fingerprints coincide, we’d begin the process to try to bring him to El Salvador.” Eric Álvarez, a spokesman for the Salvadoran chief prosecutor’s office, said Friday that judicial officials had determined that photographs of Mr. Puello in Haiti matched those of the suspect wanted in El Salvador. Continue Reading →

JORGE PUELLO: NOT A LAWYER AFTER ALL

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

For my initial report on Jorge Puello, please go directly below this entry. The Associated Press and CBS News reported Friday afternoon that Jorge Puello, “legal adviser” to the New Life adoption traffickers, as suspected, has no license to practice law in The Dominican Republic. AP reporter Frank Bajak writes: Jorge Puello, who has been a high-profile advocate for the American Baptists as they navigate the Haitian justice system, is in apparent violation of Dominican law for failing to register with the local bar association or obtain a license, said Jose Parra, vice president of the Dominican Lawyers Association. Parra said his organization was still investigating the situation and might file a complaint with the Justice Department, which could pursue criminal charges. Last night I asked some questions about Puello’s relationship to CVBC and Laura Silisby. I was particularly interested in whether Puello and Silsby had a pre-quake relationship (about what?) which would have greased the way for Puello to slide in and “advise” the prisoners, their families, and their churches. We now have this small statement from Sean Lankford, whose wife Corinna and daughter Nichole are being held in Haiti, which suggests that either the folks in Idaho are Continue Reading →

WHO IS JORGE PUELLO?

Posted on by — 25 Comments ↓

I’ve been curious about Jorge Puello since his name appeared about 10 days ago as the legal adviser for the New Lifers. Puello made a big splat on CNN when he complained about the severe conditions under which his clients were jailed: “No air conditioning! No Electricity! Very disturbing!” According to news reports Puello was hired by Laura Silby’s church, Central Valley Baptist, after either the church or Laura Silsby and her gang rejected the attorney (or attorneys) recommended by American Consular Services. Puello, in turn, hired Haitian attorney Edwin Coq to represent the detainees, even though Coq speaks Creole and no English. What to make of that nonsense? Last week, according to whose story you believe, Puello fired Coq, claiming that the Haitian had demanded a $60,000 fee and attempted to bribe the prisoners back to the US. Coq denied the accusation, and said he quit because the families back in Idaho never sent him the $60,000 he needed to take the case. Sources inside of Haiti who know Coq claim that he is an “honest young lawyer” and refused to believe Puello’s claim. Coq has complained to the press that Puello has ruined his reputation. Over the weekend Continue Reading →

HAITIANS RELEASE INTERROGATION TAPE: CHILDREN CRY FOR THEIR MOTHERS

Posted on by — 10 Comments ↓

I’m working on another piece and won’t comment on this right now. The video, released by Haitian authorities, shows them interrogating Silsby & Co. Many of the children are crying for their mothers and want to go home, while Laura Silsby tries to explain her “good intentions” Silsby, unlike, the public persona she has carefully crafted, is shaken. The article accompanying the video is here. Watch CBS News Videos Online The page also features a February 5 CBS video of a “sincere” Silsby proclaiming the group meant no disrespect to the Haitian government and had done “nothing wrong.” You may have already seen it, but it’s worth archiving. Watch CBS News Videos Online On a sidenote, The Idaho Statesman this morning published more on Laura Silsby’s financial your-check-is-in-the-mail woes. (Yes, there are more than what we already heard about!) Laura Silsby’s business couldn’t pay rent, taxes. BTW, the company’s Better Business Bureau accreditation “expired” on February 4, 2010. No doubt! And, how have I forgetten this? Personalshoppper.com was promising matching funds up to $50,000 for various children’s and school projects. I can’t get the URL to work as a direct link, but you can cut and paste this: http://www.personalshopper.com/jsp/kcl/what_others_are_saying.jsp

LAURA SILSBY LOSES HER GRIP ON THE GANG; DID THE CON GET CONNED?

Posted on by — 10 Comments ↓

This is the first part of a 2-part blog, which was becoming too long for comfortable consumption. Part 1 is limited to the latest story coming out of Haiti on the break-up of Silsby’s onsite New Lifers and allegations of attempted court bribery last week. The Laura Silsby child lifting case just keeps getting stranger. MSNBC reporter Kerry Sanders reported Saturday that one of Laura Silsby’s “missionaries” slipped a note to his producer Don Wood during an off camera interview. Signed by eight of the 10 prisoners, the note said the detainees feared for their lives. And seemingly feared Silsby. The 3 minute broadcast is below. Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Here are the relevant parts: We fear for our lies here in Haiti. There is corruption and extortion. Laura wants to control. We believe lying. We are afraid. Please you must listen. We have no way to call. Court will not let us have a say about truth for us We only came as volunteers. We had nothing to do with any documents. We have been lied to. ****** The Associated Press picks it up from there, reporting Sunday morning (Feb. 7) Continue Reading →

"IT JUST SMELLED LIKE CHILD TRAFFICKING TO ME" — US ORPHANAGE DIRECTOR SAYS OF SILSBY & CO

Posted on by — 10 Comments ↓

This nugget slipped through my fingers earlier this week. As far as I know, no one has picked up on the significance I think it has. Haiti judge quizzes US missionaries over child case was published February 3, 2010 by the BBC. The article includes an interview with Hal Nungester, director of HIS Home for Children which underwent a babylift I wrote about earlier. (You need to see the video from the link above. The full length article that you click on at the bottom of the video has a greatly edited version that excludes Nungester as does the article.) BBC: The director of this orphanage was contacted by the American missionaries but was suspicious. Nungester: We’re very cautious about anything that could even appear like traffiicking–child trafficking–and it just smelled like child trafficking to me. The same day CBS News correspondent Bill Whittaker also interviewed Nungester: CBS News has learned the Americans contacted at least two orphanages in Port-au-Prince after the quake. The director of this one turned them away and warned what they were doing was wrong. “They were looking for 100 orphans to take to the DR, the Dominican Republic,” Hal Nungester, with the H.I.S. Home for Continue Reading →