Florida indicts Cuban dictator Raul Castro

A big announcement earlier today in Miami as Attorney General James Uthmeyer was joined by a number of other officials from his office, from the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office, talking about an arrest warrant that the state has secured against former Cuban leader Raúl Castro. Here is what Attorney General Uthmeyer said at that news conference just moments ago. I wanted to make this morning's announcement in this room. This room is dedicated to the men that this morning's announcement really is all about. It was not an accident what happened. It was murder. The evidence makes abundantly clear that there was a conspiracy. Spies infiltrated both the Brothers to the Rescue as well as American government offices. Spreading from the Keys up to Miami and throughout South Florida, They reported to the Castro regime. They reported on plans, logistics, and flights. They gave information to the communist tyrants that ultimately called in the order. Raul Castro called for the planes to be shot down. He called for murder. And that is why today we are announcing state charges against Raul Castro with an arrest warrant for conspiracy to commit first degree Attorney General Uthmeyer just moments ago at that news conference where he announced a no-bond charge of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder against a former Cuban leader for the 1996 shootdown of the Brothers to the Rescue. That's four men who were on an unarmed civilian plane. If you may remember back in the spring, there was a federal indictment that was unveiled against Raul Castro. We now know of state charges and a state arrest warrant that is out for Raul Castro. And so joining us live now to talk about these latest developments and what happens next, Lindsey Lazopoulos Friedman, who is an attorney and a partner with Holtzman Vogel in Miami. Lindsey, thanks so much for joining us here on Fox Orlando Live today. Good morning, Garrett. Thank you for having me. So, Lindsey, when you and I last spoke, it was after the federal indictment. And we knew that investigators here in Florida said they were going to look into the potential for state charges against Raul Castro. Your reaction to to this announcement today? That's right, Garrett. That's exactly what we talked about back in May. And this is what they have brought forth. They brought charges that are related to the brother to the rescue shoot down. This year marks the 30 year anniversary. And it appears that the state charges are based on the same fact pattern and the same conspiracy. included in the federal indictment. And so what does this mean then as far as how this might play out and whether Raul Castro ever will appear in state court in Florida to face these charges? It's highly unlikely that he'll ever appear in state court. Recently, there had been rumors that he had had a stroke and was unwell. He is 95. He made a public appearance the first week of September, which put those rumors to bed. But I think one of the interesting things the Attorney General pointed out during the press conference was that unlike the federal indictment, no matter who comes into office as president or otherwise, there could be no pardon or excusal of these charges. So whereas a change in administration or someone that has less of an appetite to pursue justice in this case could dismiss the federal case, there would be no ability to do so here. So these charges are state charges separate and would be immune from any sort of political change of the administration. It's certainly interesting step here to see this. What does this mean for relations between the U.S. and Cuba right now? I think that's probably above my pay grade, but certainly there was a lot of hope back in May that there would be a quick resolution to the frosty relations between Cuba and the U.S. And those negotiations have been continuing. There's been a number of developments on the economic side. But I think that this is just further confirmation that we remain in an adversarial posture with Cuba, both from a government perspective and also, of course, here when it comes to representing victims, U.S. victims. Can you kind of walk us through this this charge here, conspiracy to commit first degree murder, just kind of what that what that means? Sure. So what's interesting is we don't really know the charging vehicle. we know there's an arrest warrant. Now, typically that would accompany either an indictment, which is returned by a grand jury, or an information, which is just charges that are brought by the prosecutors themselves. Here, there was no indication which it was, which I think means it's probably an information. Usually, in order to get an arrest warrant for a first-degree murder charge in Florida, you need an indictment. However, you can obtain an arrest warrant with an information where the charge is conspiracy to commit first degree murder. And that's really the only charge we know right now for sure is included is that conspiracy charge. And that would be because Raul and the pilots that committed the crime had not been in Florida, but they participated in the conspiracy, which included spies here who were committing acts on Florida soil. You talked a little bit about the, you know, kind of the reasoning for this state charge in addition to the federal charge and kind of how that almost kind of creates a backstop or, you know, a fail safe if something were to happen to that federal case. How do these cases kind of play out now in the absence of an arrest? Is everything just kind of on hold until or if Castro were to be arrested or extradited or whatever the case might be? I mean, what happens now? Sure. Well, it's unclear if there's other defendants or who the other defendants are in the state case. We know that there are five other named individuals, some who had already had their cases resolved in the federal case. However, my understanding is that case is proceeding. There are elements of it that are still sealed. So it's possible we will see further information and further developments if there are new developments or new information learned in the federal case. But if Raul Castro does not leave Cuba and head to a jurisdiction where we could seek extradition or he does not come to Florida, then probably what will happen is, unfortunately, after he passes away, the charges against him ultimately are dismissed. And that's what happens when a defendant dies before their charges are completed through either a plea or a trial. And so if it is unlikely that Castro ever kind of faces the music here in the United States, whether it's at the federal level or at the state level, then why do this, do you think? Well, I think one of the ways that this matters is because of other points that were touched on during the press conference as well as back in May. And that would be accountability and justice for the victims. They've waited over 30 years to have charges brought and to have recognition of the crime that was committed. You know, there's a lot of evidence, including a recording of Raoul himself giving the instructions to the pilots to shoot down these planes. And so for 30 years, the victims waited a long time. And I think that's the number one reason why this matters and why it still matters today. And I think the other aspect would be that it's, you know, the first step towards justice. And maybe it is a long shot that Raoul faces the inside of a Miami courtroom or a federal courtroom, but it's the first step towards that possibility ever happening. All right. Interesting developments today. And Lindsay Lizopoulos-Friedman, partner at Holtzman Vogel, we really appreciate your analysis of this. Thanks so much for breaking it down and joining us here on Fox Orlando Live today. Thank you for having me.