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FOCUS ON BERNARDO ABAN TERCERO, NICARAGUAN NATIONAL ON DEATH ROW IN THE US - JUVENILE AT THE TIME OF THE CRIME?

12/19/2014

 
See original article in Spanish here

Houston - Bernardo Aban Tercero was born in Nicaragua, where he grew up and lived most of his childhood and youth. For more than ten years the economic and political problems of his country and the few job opportunities forced him to emigrate. For that reason and motivated for the convenience of having a secure employment he decided, like many, to enter the United States, the land where according to his plans, he would have a better future and a life full of hope and well-being. A future that never arrived or crystallized --  he faces death instead, the price that the authorities believe he must pay for his decisions and actions, which according to him, he should never have taken.


Tercero is currently incarcerated in the maximum-security prison in Livingston (Texas), a place where inmates sentenced to death are waiting for their execution. There, in the visiting room, wearing his white uniform, with his hands and feet shackled and accompanied by guards and wardens of the prison, Tercero went to the appointment with Semana News, to recount the circumstances that directed him towards the corridor of death, and to send a message that he expects to be heard by the authorities, lawyers and diplomats of his country. From the narrow cubicle covered in glass and reinforced by steel bars, where barely fits one chair, and using a phone, he told us his story. "Bad influences affected his behaviour, and at that age you don't think about the consequences," said the Nicaraguan. He refers to the misguided decision that had to be involved in a crime on March 31, 1997. "I came alone. Passed through Mexico, and by those countries of Central America I was very young," he said quickly, and then went on to describe the drama that he faced for having committed a crime. On that fateful day in March of 1997, Tercero attempted to rob a dry cleaner, a crime that he committed carrying a firearm. At establishment was a customer named Robert Keith Berger, 38 years old. Berger attempted to prevent the robbery and in the struggle with the Tercero, the  weapon was fired claiming the life of the customer. In 2000, Tercero was sentenced to death, and since then waits his turn to be executed in the prison of Livingston. "I had no intention to kill anyone. I have extensive documentation to prove it" he said with obvious despair.

Tercero does not deny his crime, but said he does not deserve the death penalty for several reasons, including the fact that he was a minor at the time of the robbery and the fatal outcome. In accordance with Texas law there should not exist the possibility of the death penalty for a minor under 18 years old who committed a violent crime.

For Tercero already has spent more than ten years and several hearings and appeals to demonstrate his true age when he committed the crime and has not yet been able to achieve his objective of changing his death sentence, for life imprisonment in a maximum security prison. But things are not that easy, because of another wrong decision that Tercero took in the past, and that was to use the identity of his dead brother, who had the same name and was born 20 August 1976, three years before him. He explains that when he reached this country, he faced several barriers, including the impossibility of renting housing, and work. "I had difficulty to rent apartments, work and change checks because he was under age and that is why I had to get an ID (identification papers) with the name of my older brother," he said. The opportunity was provided at the time because both he and his brother were given the same name and were born August 20, but now, this is becoming the main obstacle to change the direction of his legal case and avoid death by execution by the laws of Texas. "If no one helps me my death will be inevitable," he said, distraught.

The dilemma of this immigrant allows you to reflect on the consequences having identity theft, a crime that affects millions of people in the United States, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), entity in charge of preventing fraud and scams consumers annually.

Identity theft causes damage legal, economic and moral for those who are affected, since your personal information (name, social security number, credit history) is used by third parties to commit crimes, access to services or obtain credit. And although the case of Tercero is presented from the perspective of the person who commits the crime, he does not cease to be dramatic, according to the experts. "Here there are several elements, because it is not only the crime of homicide, but the masquerade as another person," said attorney Carolina Ortuzar, immigration specialist, who also pointed out that the penalties or fines may vary depending on each case. "The sanctions depend on the documents that are falsified and the use to which they have been put," said the lawyer. In general terms, he added, use of a name that does not belongs to you is a fraud and there may or may not forgiveness. Ortuzar said that, to avoid the need to steal an identity, the people can perform contract work or to find other means to work, within their capabilities, in a legal way.

For Bernardo Tercero he can only hope that the legal authorities of Nicaragua should coordinate with the authorities of this country on his unproved statement of being under-age, and that made him pass for his deceased older brother in order to be able to work in this country. Tercero says he is driven to despair by the absence of consular assistance of his country, something that consul Samuel Trejos refutes, since someone has been visiting him in a frequent way and attending to him legally. “We have assisted him but it was not possible to have presented to the Court the papers (documents) of evidence of his claim. We could not obtain from his family the definitive proofs of the matter that he was under-age”, said Trejos, also saying that Tercero is the only Nicaraguan who today faces the death penalty in the United States.


Read more about Bernardo Aban Tercero's case here

Credit: La Semana News (In Spanish, English translation of article below)
Tatiana link
8/1/2015 06:07:51 am

That criminal deserves to die! He took away an innocent´s life. He ruined the child´s childhood depriving him the right of growing up close to his father. Now that cynical murderer asks for compassion, when he did not have compassion at all. WE DO NOT WANT MORE CRIMINALS IN NICARAGUA! THAT CRIMINAL DESERVES TO BE PUNISHED! IF HE IS REALEASED FROM JAIL AND SENT TO NICARAGUA, HE WON´T STOP KILLING!

Juan Alberto Hinostroza link
8/11/2015 10:01:04 am

But if was American he wouldn't even be in Death row he would have got 30yrs in Prison and also Entitled for Parole there shouldnt be no favoritism in the world we all should be measured with the same stick !!

Lucy
8/22/2015 04:19:57 pm

Exactly!

Sul
8/23/2015 09:09:01 am

Linda
8/25/2015 05:27:00 am

Judge not unless be judged. Tatiana, only God can judge because you don't know what transpired at the time of the robbery. A life was taken but Bernardo said that he never meant to hurt anyone. It's unfortunate that a man was killed but a life for a life doesn't make sense.

Pablo E. Salazar
8/25/2015 08:12:02 am

To all of those who are justifying Bernardo being under age I am hispanic and in this wonderful country the law is the law in from the moment you granlb a gun and enter a business place with the intention of robbing it you basically know what you're doing and obviously your mind is set to inflict harm to innocent people instead of getting a job in this wonderful nation he came here and took some innocent a good citizen's life and hurt innocent people forever while this criminal the heroe is gone and the parasite is still living off this nation's good citizen's taxes the parasite needs to go because he took a good man's live and the parasite is still breathing.
What now his human rights were abused? What about the human''s right he abused from the heroe that lost his life trying to save another productive good american citizen? Incredible how people coment to protect one this innocent killer.

Alex
8/24/2015 10:47:52 am

It cost to much money the the people to keep this guy in jail for many years..killing this guy is a way to cut the expenses. That the way the justice is in the united states so he has to accept it and confess his sins and accept God.

Roy
8/25/2015 05:34:47 am

Estados Unidos critica y exigen libertad y que se respeten los derechos humanos a países como cuba y ellos son los mas criminales y violadores número uno de los derechos humanos son unos malditos racistas si fuera un anglosajon inmediatamente le aceptan todas sus peticiones hasta lo indultan gringos son los enemigos de la humanidad Estados Unidos es enemigo del mundo pronto llegara su fin malditos perros


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