To: John Kerry, U.S. Secretary of State
John Kerry: Help Free U.S. Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi
Citizens of allied nations should not face prison time when they make an honest mistake. Andrew Tahmooressi, a former U.S. Marine, is in Mexico's LaMesa prison--and facing a lengthy sentence--because he got into the wrong lane on a Southern California freeway.
He attempted to turn around after crossing the Mexican border, but was arrested on weapons charges when he truthfully told Mexican border agents that he had (legal) firearms in his truck.
His fate rests in the hands of a judge in Mexico, but the U.S. State Department can and should use diplomatic pressure to free him.
We ask Secretary of State John Kerry to negotiate with Mexican officials for Sgt. Tahmooressi's immediate release.
He attempted to turn around after crossing the Mexican border, but was arrested on weapons charges when he truthfully told Mexican border agents that he had (legal) firearms in his truck.
His fate rests in the hands of a judge in Mexico, but the U.S. State Department can and should use diplomatic pressure to free him.
We ask Secretary of State John Kerry to negotiate with Mexican officials for Sgt. Tahmooressi's immediate release.
Why is this important?
As a Southern California resident, I know all too well how easy it is to get in the wrong lane - on either side of the border - and end up somewhere you didn't intend. This young former Marine had just moved here from another state and was driving at night in a borrowed truck. He ended up in the wrong lane and had no choice but to enter Mexico, where he attempted to turn around and come home immediately. When he truthfully answered questions at the border about having weapons, he was arrested. There is no reason for Mexico to be holding him, except to gain political leverage with the U.S. It is clear that he did not intend to commit a crime. Andrew Tahmooressi has already spent more than a month in a Mexican prison. The 25-year-old machine gunner was diagnosed with PTSD after his two deployments to Afghanistan, and was receiving treatment at a local VA hospital. But since his arrest in Mexico, his family and friends fear the worst. One likens his current situation to the conditions experienced by a POW, and worries about the effect of the confinement on his mental health. He should be released immediately.