Republished from the Free Juan Ruiz blog

Good news from the court hearing today in San Diego. The government has dropped all felony charges against Juan. Instead, they are charging him with a class C misdemeanor of impeding a federal officer. Juan pleaded "not guilty" to this charge. The next hearing date is January 22, 2008 for motions related to this case. The trial, if it should be needed, is scheduled for Feb. 4, 2008. Most likely, the judge will allow Juan to return to Wisconsin in the interim.

It is likely that the support shown to Juan by folks who signed the petition and wrote letters, etc, was instrumental in helping the prosecution to see Juan as the good kid that he is. We really appreciate everyone's support and thank them.

While this is certainly better than the initial charges, it may still be a problem for Juan's immigration status and ability to obtain US citizenship. We will be consulting with immigration attorneys, as has his attorney in San Diego, and proceeding cautiously.

Next steps: 1) help Juan get home to Wisconsin, 2) legal help with immigration, 3) prepare defense for this case 4) fundraising for transportation and legal costs. Donations are still needed!

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Free Juan Ruiz blog