TRAGEDY AT CORAL GABLES HIGH
Slain boy's mom waits for Cuba to let her leave
The mother of the teenager stabbed to death at Coral Gables Senior High
got approval from the U.S. government to travel from Havana to Miami for
her son's funeral.
By KATHLEEN McGRORY, LUISA YANEZ AND JENNIFER LEBOVICH
jlebovich@MiamiHerald.com
The mother of the slain Coral Gables Senior High School student came one
step closer on Thursday to leaving Cuba to bury her son in Miami.
Anais Cruz, 42, who is a doctor and lives in Havana, secured a temporary
visa from U.S. authorities in Cuba. It's now up to the Cuban government
to give her permission to leave.
``I am pleased that our U.S. authorities have acted in such a thorough
yet compassionate manner and expedited this case,'' said U.S. Rep.
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Miami, who has been working with Miami-Dade
Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho to help Cruz make the trip.
``Hopefully, she will soon be in the U.S. to bury her son.''
Cruz's son, Juan Carlos Rivera, 17, had come to Miami five months ago
and was living with relatives. On Tuesday, he was stabbed to death at
school by a classmate.
As a doctor, Cruz needed special permission to leave Cuba.
If Cruz is allowed to travel, ABC Charters, a subsidiary of American
Airlines, has agreed to provide her with a free flight.
The school district and the United Way will help arrange the funeral --
and are raising funds to cover the costs, Carvalho said.
``This is a tragedy that has touched all of us,'' Carvalho said. ``To
afford a mother the opportunity to say a final farewell to her son --
that is something that anyone on Earth should work to provide.''
As Rivera's family prepared to bury their loved one, the family of
murder suspect Andy Rodriguez charged that Rivera had instigated the
fight that led to the stabbing.
``You have to listen to both sides of the story,'' his grandmother, Elsa
Alfonso, told WLTV-Channel 23, a Spanish-language television station.
``I don't want to excuse what he did,'' she said. ``I know how that
other boy's grandmother is suffering, but that boy had been picking on
my grandson for days.''
Rodriguez faces second-degree murder charges.
Relatives and friends denied that the altercation had been over a girl,
as has been reported. Idalma Castresana, Rodriguez's mother, said her
son reacted only after being challenged.
``He's not a criminal,'' she said. ``He's a good, decent boy.''
Donations for funeral arrangements are being accepted at the
websitegivingourstudentstheworld.org. Please specify that the donation
is for funeral arrangements.
Slain boy's mom waits for Cuba to let her leave - Miami-Dade -
MiamiHerald.com (17 September 2009)
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami-dade/story/1239097.html
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