Lawyers for Martha’s Vineyard Migrants Call for Criminal Probe

• Attorneys for the migrants dumped on Martha’s Winery want a criminal probe into the incident.
• They referred to as on state and federal prosecutors to open an investigation into the “shameful political stunt.”
• Last week, 50 migrants ended up flown to Martha’s Winery in a transfer orchestrated by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Attorneys for the dozens of migrants who had been dumped on the Massachusetts island of Martha’s Winery have termed on point out and federal prosecutors to open a criminal probe into the “shameful political stunt” orchestrated by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. 

The Boston-based mostly Legal professionals for Civil Legal rights group — which claims it is representing more than 30 of the migrants — sent letters to Massachusetts Legal professional General Maura Healey and Massachusetts US Legal professional Rachael Rollins about the weekend, expressing that “prison regulations have been damaged by the perpetrators of this stunt.”

Last 7 days, 50 undocumented Venezuelan and Colombian immigrants ended up flown on two chartered planes from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in a move that was arranged by DeSantis. No Massachusetts officials were being notified that the dozens of migrants have been coming.

The immigrants have given that been relocated to a military foundation in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

“Our purchasers have been induced to board airplanes and cross state strains under fake pretenses,” Legal professionals for Civil Rights’ govt director Iván Espinoza-Madrigal and the group’s litigation director, Oren Sellstrom, wrote in the letters. 

“Folks, working in live performance with the Florida Governor, produced many false claims to our purchasers, like of get the job done opportunities, education for their kids, and immigration aid, in buy to induce them to vacation,” they explained. 

DeSantis’ place of work did not immediately answer when asked for remark on the attorneys’ assertion.

Espinoza-Madrigal and Sellstrom pointed to how migrants were reportedly informed they have been heading to Boston and that they could discover operate there. 

“It was only when the flight was in mid-air that they ended up knowledgeable they would be flown to Martha’s Winery, alternatively than to Boston as quite a few experienced been instructed,” they wrote in their letters. 

“At the time the planes landed, individuals who had induced our customers to travel less than these fake pretenses disappeared, leaving our shoppers to master that the offers of support had all been a ruse to exploit them for political functions,” they stated. 

Espinoza-Madrigal and Sellstrom reported their purchasers ended up robbed of their liberty.

“The perpetrators specific our customers centered on race and national origin in get to make the political position they wished,” they explained. 

Espinoza-Madrigal and Sellstrom additional in their letter to Rollins, “This sort of conspiracy to deprive our clients of their liberty and civil rights and interfere with federal immigration proceedings have to be carefully investigated for violations of felony guidelines.”

They also stated the make any difference will have to be investigated for “violations of the Massachusetts Civil Legal rights Act and all other applicable criminal rules” in the letter to Healey.

A spokeswoman for Healey, Chloe Gotsis, informed Insider on Monday: “Our business office carries on to assessment all info applicable to this problem. We are in touch with our federal and point out partners, alongside with lawyers symbolizing the migrants, as we gather details and appraise all authorized possibilities.”

The US Attorney’s Office environment for Massachusetts instructed Insider it did not have any comment.