American Sanctioned By U.S. For Visit to Cuba Files Suit

[WSJ_law_blog]

The Law Blog has long wanted to sing “Guantanamera” on the shores of Havana. So we took notice when the Obama administration recently reversed course from prior administrations regarding our island neighbor to the south, Cuba, by easing travel restrictions for individuals who want to visit their relatives there.

It wasn’t so long ago, however, that the government apparently took a hard line against at least one illegal visitor.

In 1998, New Yorker Zachary Sanders took a trip to Cuba. Two years later, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which enforces economic sanctions against countries such as Cuba and Iran, sent him a request for information about the trip, according to a story moved by Dow Jones Newswires’s Chad Bray. (Link unavailable.)

He didn’t respond, and OFAC allegedly got an administrative law judge to fine him $1,000 last year. (The agency had proposed a fine as large as $10,000.) OFAC appealed the judge’s ruling and on Jan. 16 of this year — the Bush administration’s last day — a designee for then-Treasury Sec. Henry Paulson allegedly affirmed the penalty and increased it to $9,000.

On Thursday Sanders filed suit in federal court in Brooklyn, challenging the U.S. government’s restrictions on spending by American citizens and permanent residents while traveling to Cuba. (Click here for the complaint.)

He makes an interesting argument by claiming people who respond to OFAC’s requests for information about their travels open themselves up for potential criminal sanctions.

”The penalty imposed against Mr. Sanders is unlawful because the Fifth Amendment prohibits the government from punishing failure to obey any regulation that requires a self-incriminating act,” the lawsuit said.

Representing Sanders: the left-leaning nonprofit Center for Constitutional Rights. The suit seeks a declaration that OFAC’s policy is unlawful, enjoining OFAC from issuing such penalties and setting aside the fine to Sanders.

The lawsuit names Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner as a defendant. The Treasury Department declined to comment.

Latest comments on the topic:

10:18 am July 17, 2009
Wright Patman wrote:
.One last act in office by Henry Paulson, the biggest crook to serve as Treasury Secretary since Henry Mellon left that office in 1932. Mellon resigning to avoid probable impeachment for “high crimes and misdemeanors” as Congressman Patman then put it. Mellon did favors for his friends, helping them to avoid paying income taxes. Paulson also did favors to his friends, at Goldman Sachs, helping them loot the Treasury to bail themselves out. It seems issuing big fines is all the Treasury Department is good for these days, a bunch of meter maids in three piece business suits.
.
10:20 am July 17, 2009
Anonymous wrote:
.Andrew Mellon, not Henry. But whatever the different first names, they had the same mindset.
.
10:22 am July 17, 2009
Mike wrote:
.The irony of living in the land of the free but we can’t go wherever we want.
.
10:30 am July 17, 2009
Andy A wrote:
.No American should be prohibited to travel anywhere in the world by their own government .
They should only be advised that if they travel to certain countries that the US has no diplomatic relations, that if they get in trouble , they would be on their own .
They should also be advised not to travel to those countries if they do not have the proper approval of the host country first , and to not start any diplomatic incident like in the case of those two Americans women who entered North Korea illegaly and got detained .
.
10:36 am July 17, 2009
SIGN THE PETITION-WWW.OPENCUBA.ORG wrote:
.It is unbelieveable, THAT WE ARE THE ONLY CITIZENS IN THE WORLD NOT ALLOWED TO GO TO CUBA, BECAUSE IF WE DO, WE WILL GET AN LOI (LETTER OF INVESTIGATION) IN THE MAIL FROM OFAC, ASKING US ABOUT OUR TRIP. I HAVE WANTED TO GO TO CUBA FOREVER, MY BRITISH FRIENDS HAVE BEEN AND SAY ITS GREAT, THERE ARE SOME FAB 5 STAR HOTEL RESORTS THAT I WOULD LOVE TO CHECK OUT THERE, BUT NOOOOOO! THE TERRORIST CUBAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN SOUTH FLORIDA CONTINUES TO HOLD THIS COUNTRY HOSTAGE -CONTINUES TO BELIEVE THAT AFTER 50 YEARS, THE CUBANS WANT TO GET RID OF CASTRO. HINT. THEY DON’T. AND THEY WILL FIGHT TO THE DEATH TO CONTINUE THEIR WAY OF LIFE, SO IT’S ABOUT TIME THAT THIS COUNTRY ACCEPTS THIS FACT, AND ALLOWS ITS CITIZENS TO FREELY TRAVEL TO CUBA, JUST LIKE CITIZENS FROM EVERY COUNTRY ON EARTH CAN DO, (EVEN THE CHINESE, WHO ARE TRAVEL RESTRICTED TO OTHER COUNTRIES, CAN GO TO CUBA UNINPEDED!)

EVERYONE CAN VISIT CUBA EXCEPT AMERICANS, AMERICA- HOME OF THE FREE AND THE BRAVE-UHHHHH, NOT EXACTLY!

SO PRESIDENT OBAMA, HOW ABOUT IT? TEAR DOWN THAT STUPID TRAVEL BAN ON CUBA, MR. PRESIDENT, TEAR IT DOWN NOW!

. IF YOU GO TO THE ABOVE CITED WEBSITE-OPENCUBA.ORG, YOU’LL FIND THE PETITION AND INFORMATION TO FILL OUT, A PETITION CAMPAIGN SPONSORED BY ORBITZ, THE TRAVEL WEBSITE, TO LIFT THE TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS ON TOURIST TRAVEL TO CUBA. WE ARE LOSING OUT IN TRAVELING AND DISCOVERING THIS MUSIC LOVING NATION WITH ITS HISTORICAL TREASURES. SIGN THE PETITION TODAY!
.
10:48 am July 17, 2009
Hey.. wrote:
.Wright Patman - Mellon was absolved, numbnuts!
.
10:48 am July 17, 2009
oS wrote:
.Castro Cuba BS.
.
10:50 am July 17, 2009
Anonymous wrote:
.Say what you will about Castro, you got to hand it to the chap for sending those dirty Mafia boys scurrying from the casinos like rats from a sinking ship. Castro may not be ideal but he was tons better than the mobbed-up Batista.
.
10:51 am July 17, 2009
Tony Baretta wrote:
.Hey, don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time. Remember, always keep your eye on the sparrow.
.
10:53 am July 17, 2009
Uncle Sam wrote:
.Why do your traitors that complain about not being able to travel want to support a communist dictator? You don’t like your Uncle Sammy no mo’? I have decided I do NOT want YOU.
.
10:54 am July 17, 2009
The Bomb wrote:
.I love when people write in all-CAPS. It indicates high intelligence and well-thought out ideas.
.
11:01 am July 17, 2009
Reply to 10:48 am wrote:
.Check Wikipedia before making stupid and wrong comments about the Mellon case. By resigning, Mellon made the issue of impeachment mute. The definition of absolve, a word you never bothered to look up, is “to pronounce clear of guilt or blame.” The Patman charges never went to trial, so there was no official clearance until now, when you pronounced your verdict. People who post insults here judge themselves by that action. Get a life!
.
11:12 am July 17, 2009
Yo , Uncle Sammy ... wrote:
.Would Uncle Sammy approve if we send some Americans to Cuba , North Korea , Iran or Burma , to start making trouble there under the pretext of “human rights ” ?
.
11:16 am July 17, 2009
Obamain wrote:
.Is Raul Castro gay?
.
11:24 am July 17, 2009
PAULSON WAS NOT THE PROBLEM, BUT GEITHNER SURE IS! wrote:
.Wright-Patman, I’m a non-ideologue Democrat and I strongly disagree with your ugly characterization of Henry Paulson. You can look at this man Henry Paulson and see he is a true public servant, a man filled with integrity-there has never been UNLIKE OUR PRESENT SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY, TIM GEITHNER, A CAUGHT-OUT TAX CHEAT-a hint of scandal, of anything improper in his long and distinguished career on Wall Street, and then serving as he has in various positions of government until he became Treasury Secretary.

Paulson it must be said suffered from no conflict of interest when he became Treasury Secretary-HE HAD SOLD OFF ALL OF HIS FINANCIAL INTEREST IN GOLDMAN SACHS PRIOR TO BECOMING SECRETARY.

NO ONE LAST FALL UNDERSTOOD COMPLETELY WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH THE MARKETS-AND THE TREASURY DEPT. WAS WORKING 24/7 TRYING TO DO SOMETHING, ANYTHING TO KEEP THE ECONOMY GOING, TO PREVENT IT FROM GOING INTO A TOTAL MELTDOWN-ANY MORE THAN WHAT HAD OCCURRED. YOU CANNOT FAULT PAULSON FOR TRYING EVERYTHING HE KNEW TO DO AT THAT TIME TO PROP UP THE MARKETS-INDEED, HAD HE NOT DONE WHAT HE DID, GOD ONLY KNOWS WHERE THIS ECONOMY WOULD BE RIGHT NOW-REALLY, GOD ONLY KNOWS!

ON THE OTHER HAND, GEITHNER WAS UP HERE IN NY DOING EFFECTIVELY NOTHING AS HEAD OF THE NY REGULATORS DURING THE TIME PERIOD IN QUESTION-AS MADOFF SCAMMED AND HIS FELLOW WALL STREETERS CONTINUED ON THEIR MERRY WAY ENGAGING IN ONE HIGH RISK VENTURE AFTER ANOTHER-GEITHNER WAS WHAT? RUNNING OFF TO CHINA ON SOME COOL TRAVEL TRIPS? USING TURBO-TAX TO CHEAT ON HIS TAX RETURNS, JUST LIKE HIS FELLOW CHEATERS AND SCAMMERS ON WALL STREET? COME ON-YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME-GEITHNER IS WITHOUT QUESTION, THE WORST CHOICE, THE MOST UNKNOWLEDGEABLE AND UNPREPARED AND ETHICALLY DAMAGED A CHOICE FOR TREASURY SECRETARY AS ANY PERSON WHO HAS EVER ENCUMBERED THAT POSITION!

PLEASE-GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT-IT’S GEITHNER THAT IS AND WAS THE PROBLEM-PAULSON, WHO HAS TWICE THE EXPERIENCE ON WALL STREET IN PUBLIC SERVICE TO HIS COUNTRY, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY HAD NOT A HINT OF SCANDAL OR CONFLICT OF INTEREST AROUND HIM, WAS TRYING TO GET IT RIGHT-AND HE DID SAVE THE ECONOMY, I BELIEVE FROM SOMETHING LIKE A TOTAL MELTDOWN.

PAULSON HAS, ACTED AT ALL TIMES IN GOOD FAITH-PITY WE CANNOT SAY THE SAME FOR GEITHNER!
.
11:32 am July 17, 2009
Anonymous wrote:
.I love when people write in all-CAPS. It indicates high intelligence and well-thought out ideas.
.
11:34 am July 17, 2009
Hey.. wrote:
.Hey 11:01 (aka Wright Patman): Okay, one more time, numbnuts:
Andrew W. Mellon - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Roosevelt administration subjected Mellon to intense investigation of his personal income tax returns. The U.S. Justice Department empaneled a grand jury, which declined to issue an indictment. A two-year civil action beginning in 1935, dubbed the “Mellon Tax Trial,” eventually exonerated Mellon, albeit several months after his death. Amity Shlaes argues that the prosecution was politically motivated.[11]

Also, read:
Amazon.com: Mellon: An American Life: David Cannadine: Books
Bio by D Cannadine. It goes into the story IN DETAIL.
Short summary: Mellon was railroaded by Roosevelt & was ABSOLVED.

Now - who should get a life?
.
11:34 am July 17, 2009
Traveler wrote:
.Castro, better then Batista, who in the hell are you kidding! Castro, is a murderer! Cuba, is the biggest prison in the the world. There is no freedom to travel or leave the country unless you are invited out or merry a foreigner. The wage in Cuba, is about 15-20 dollars a month. He is a drug runner . He rips off Americans 20% or anyone that exchanges American, money for CUC. The beautiful country is deteriorating. He made prostitutes of his women. There is no Internet for Cubans, unless you have about 5 bucks to spend in a hotel for Internet access. Cubans, are not allowed to speak to tourist. I can go on and on. We can travel anywhere in the world even to North Korea, it is stupid we can’t travel to Cuba, Our government has no business keeping us from traveling there it is against our constitution. In fact it is my right. And that doesn’t make me a traitor, now that is an ignorant comment

Traveler
.
11:39 am July 17, 2009
Yo Carol wrote:
.Um, hey 11:01 - I checked wikipedia & wikipedia says he was absolved (or exonerated, take your pick):

Andrew W. Mellon - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Roosevelt administration subjected Mellon to intense investigation of his personal income tax returns. The U.S. Justice Department empaneled a grand jury, which declined to issue an indictment. A two-year civil action beginning in 1935, dubbed the “Mellon Tax Trial,” eventually exonerated Mellon, albeit several months after his death. Amity Shlaes argues that the prosecution was politically motivated.[11]

Also, read:
Amazon.com: Mellon: An American Life: David Cannadine: Books
Bio by D Cannadine. It goes into the story IN DETAIL.
Short summary: Mellon was railroaded by Roosevelt & was ABSOLVED.
.
11:40 am July 17, 2009
Traveler wrote:
.P.S one more thing thing the mafia was invented here I believe and the last time I heard they are still here.

Traveler


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American Sanctioned By U.S. After Cuba Visit Files Suit - Law Blog - WSJ