December 13, 2011

Ruben Barrera Botello, State Director of Pennsylvania National League of Latin American Citizens (NLLAC) Shippensburg, PA 17257

The Honorable Barack Obama President of the United States of America The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 RE: Ramsey Muiz Commutation of Life Sentence Denial Dear Mr. President: We pray you and your family are all doing well this holiday season. As State Director of Pennsylvania for the National League of Latin American Citizens (NLLAC), I would like to take this opportunity to urge you to reconsider the Application for Commutation of the unjust life sentence against our dear mentor, colleague and friend, Ramsey Muiz, Esquire. Ramsey was a prominent and highly respected Corpus Christi attorney who also ran for Governor of Texas, in 1974-75. Latinas and Latinos from throughout South Texas and the rest of the nation saw Ramsey, as a great leader, rising star and role model who inspired us all to be good citizens, do well in school and go to college, in order to be able to help our people, as responsible adults. His 1994 conviction and life sentence astonished especially those of us who believe in his innocence, to this day. Ramsey should never have been given a life sentence, and his beloved wife, Irma, continues to hope and pray for his release, as we all do throughout the nation. Born and raised just 22 miles from Corpus Christi, I know quite well how difficult it is to grow up in South Texas as a Latino, but thanks to Ramsey and other Latino heroes of his generation, I also went to college and law school, to earn my jurisdoctorate and help my people like Ramsey was doing. Ramsey should be out here, now, instead of behind bars where his excellent education, professional experience and desire to serve our nation, society and Latino communities is wasting away. After high school, I joined the Marines in 1965, and served in Vietnam before going to college and law school on the G.I. Bill. Ramseys inspirational vision helped me see

through my PTSD, and aspire for a better life than the poverty I grew up in, in South Texas. Thanks to Ramseys inspiration, I even worked with the federal Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA) against crime, gangs and drug abuse in our communities where the need for professional Latino intervention is so great. To accuse Ramsey of drug trafficking, and to then deprive our Latino communities of this great leader and role model for the rest of his life was and still is a tremendous shock to us all. This reminds me of Nelson Mandela who was given the death sentence, and then a life sentence before he was finally released, and became the first Black President of South Africa, as you became the first Black President of the United States of America. Attorneys like Nelson Mandela, Ramsey Muiz and your self should never be treated like trash, to be discarded and forgotten by the very governments and societies we all serve. There are over 55 million Latinas and Latinos in the U.S. who need Ramsey working alongside us, to better our communities, now. Ramsey has been unjustly imprisoned for 18 years already. Please reconsider your denial of his Application for Commutation, Mr. President, and end this travesty of justice for the sake of us all. In God We Trust,

Ruben Barrera Botello, JD 62 Independence Drive Shippensburg, PA 17257 Cc: National League of Latin American Citizens (NLLAC), Houston TX