24 Nov HE’S FREE: JONATHAN POLLARD’S PAROLE RESTRICTIONS LIFTED; AFTER 35 YEARS HE’S FINALLY A FREE MAN
Free at last.
Precisely five years since Jonathan Pollard was released from prison after serving thirty years of an unprecedented life sentence for passing classified information to an ally, Israel, he was finally informed last Friday afternoon, Erev Shabbos, that onerous parole restrictions have been lifted. Now, thirty-five years after his arrest on November 21, 1985, Jonathan Pollard, 65, is a free man. Pollard is a former intelligence analyst for the United States government. In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel. He was sentenced to life in prison for violations of the Espionage Act. Pollard is the only American who has received a life sentence for passing classified information to an ally of the U.S. In defense of his actions, Pollard declared that he committed espionage only because “the American intelligence establishment collectively endangered Israel’s security by withholding crucial information”. Israeli officials, U.S.-Israeli activist groups, and some U.S. politicians who saw his punishment as unfair lobbied continually for reduction or commutation of his sentence. The Israeli government acknowledged a portion of its role in Pollard’s espionage in 1987, and issued a formal apology to the U.S., but did not admit to paying him until 1998. Over the course of his imprisonment, Israel made repeated unsuccessful attempts through both official and unofficial channels to secure his release. He was granted Israeli citizenship in 1995. Opposing any form of clemency were many active and retired U.S. officials, including Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, former CIA director George Tenet; several former U.S. Secretaries of Defense; a bi-partisan group of U.S. congressional leaders; and members of the U.S. intelligence community. They maintained that the damage to U.S. national security due to Pollard’s espionage was far more severe, wideranging, and enduring than publicly acknowledged. Though Pollard argued that he only supplied Israel with information critical to its security, opponents pointed out that he had no way of knowing what the Israelis had received through legitimate exchanges, and that much of the data he compromised had nothing to do with Israeli security. Pollard revealed aspects of the U.S. intelligence gathering process, its “sources and methods”. He sold numerous closely guarded state secrets, including the National Security Agency’s ten-volume manual on how the U.S. gathers its signal intelligence, and disclosed the names of thousands of people who had cooperated with U.S. intelligence agencies. While Bibi Netanyahu argued that Pollard worked exclusively for Israel, Pollard admitted shopping his services—successfully, in some cases—to other countries. Some of the accusations against Pollard can be traced to a CIA mole named Aldrich Ames, who allegedly caused a shift to “blame Mr. Pollard for exposing the American agents to clear himself of suspicion.” The same source “said that Mr. Pollard never exposed American agents in the Soviet Union or elsewhere.” U.S. President Donald Trump considered allowing Pollard to attend the opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, but that did not materialize. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly raised Pollard’s case in his meetings with Trump. Pollard was released last Friday in accordance with federal guidelines in place at the time of his sentencing. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s media adviser said this past weekend that Netanyahu “welcomes” Pollard’s release and that Netanyahu “hopes to see Jonathan Pollard in Israel soon, and together with all Israelis.” According to Pollard’s lawyer, Eliot Lauer, Pollard plans on moving to Israel as soon as his wife is healthy enough to do so. “Jonathan and Esther plan to come to Israel, but they cannot do so immediately, due to Esther’s chemotherapy treatments,” Lauer told Israel’s Kan News. “They plan to leave for Israel as soon as her condition allows. They plan to come home.”
Pollard’s attorneys provided the following statement and message from Jonathan:
Mr. Pollard is no longer subject to a curfew, is no longer prohibited from working for a company that does not have U.S. government monitoring software on its computer systems, is no longer required to wear a wrist monitor that tracks his whereabouts, and is free to travel anywhere, including Israel, for temporary or permanent residence, as he wishes. During the past five years, since his release on parole from federal prison, Mr. Pollard has been subject to these U.S. government restrictions. We are grateful and delighted that our client is finally free of any restrictions, and is now a free man in all respects. We look forward to seeing our client in Israel. Mr. Pollard was released on parole November 21, 2015. He had been in prison since November 21, 1985, serving a sentence of life in prison for conspiracy to deliver classified information to the State of Israel. Over the past several months, we have communicated with the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Parole Commission, emphasizing that Mr. Pollard has had an exemplary record, both as a prisoner and as a parolee, and that there is every reason for confidence that he will be a model citizen after his parole restrictions are lifted. Mr. Pollard has asked us to communicate the following on his behalf: Pollard is happy to finally be able to assist his beloved wife Esther, who is fighting an aggressive form of cancer. Mr. Pollard would like people to know that it was his wife, more than anyone else, who kept him alive during all the years he was in prison. Pollard is deeply grateful to his longstanding pro bono lawyers Eliot Lauer and Jacques Semmelman, and their law firm Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP, who have stood by him for so many years, and whose perseverance, creativity, and forceful advocacy were instrumental in securing his release from prison on parole, and the lifting of the parole restrictions. Pollard is also extremely thankful to Rabbi Pesach Lerner, who has worked tirelessly for many years on Mr. Pollard’s behalf, and to the generous contributors who have assisted financially during the past five years, as the U.S. government placed insurmountable impediments on Mr. Pollard’s ability to earn a living. Pollard expresses appreciation and gratitude to Ambassador Ron Dermer, acting under the auspices of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for their efforts on his behalf. Pollard thanks Dov Friedberg for his long standing support and friendship; Israeli attorneys Larry Dub and Nitsana Dirshan-Leitner for their devoted pro bono representation over many years; and Adi Ginsberg, Rabbi Asher Mivtzari, and all the volunteers under their direction for their unrelenting work in Israel on Mr. Pollard’s behalf. Pollard expresses his deepest respect and heartfelt thanks to the late Chief Rabbi, His Honor Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt”l, and to his entire family, as well as to his Chief of Staff Rav Chaim Suissa, for providing spiritual guidance and strength to Jonathan and Esther Pollard from the outset of the case, and whose friendship remains strong and vibrant. Pollard is deeply grateful to so many others in the U.S., Israel, and around the world who have helped devotedly. They are too numerous to mention by name, but they include: Andrew Brooke, Goldi Steiner, Risha Balter and Nomi Winkler of Toronto; Bella Amiram and Naomi Knobel of Jerusalem; and in the U.S., the late Chaim Stern, attorneys Kenneth Lasson and Gary Apfel, and the late Judge George Leighton. Finally, Mr. Pollard thanks all people of good will who have kept him in their prayers and hoped for this day.
WE WILL RETURN HOME TO ISRAEL VERY SOON
By: Jonathan Pollard
Thirty years ago, my beloved wife Esther found her way into USP Marion, the highest security prison in the United States, where I was languishing in a dungeon cell 3 stories underground behind 13 locks and keys. Esther reached out and cut the shackles off of my heart and restored my soul to life. That is when the fight for my freedom began in earnest. Fast forward 35 years. Today, Esther, fearlessly cut the GPS device off of my wrist, restoring me to almost complete freedom (with full authorization from the parole office.) The final step to freedom that remains is our return home to the Land and the People we love. G-d willing, very soon! Esther and I are overwhelmed with gratitude and we want to thank all of the wonderful people in Israel and in the US from the bottom of our hearts who fought for us throughout all of the long years on the road to freedom. We also deeply appreciate your cards and letters and especially your prayers throughout the years. Lastly, and especially because of Esther’s dire medical situation we thank all of our family and friends everywhere for understanding our need to use whatever time we have left here in the USA calmly and quietly arranging our Aliyah to Israel and assuring Esther’s on-going medical treatment. We therefore hope to keep a very low profile so that I can focus on taking care of my beloved wife. To that end, we would also like to add our endless thanks to all of the local doctors who came to our rescue to save Esther’s life, when we had no insurance for her and nowhere to turn for help, among them: Dr. Yashar Hirshaut, Dr. Marcy Susman, Dr. Joe Felder, Dr. Burton Cohen, Dr. Raphael Rosenbaum, Dr. Azriel Haimowitz, Dr. Lee Gause, Dr. Larissa Mashensky, Dr. Raphael Kellman, Dr. Michael Bashevkin, and Dr. Alfred Rosenbaum. These great doctors have become family to us and with their help we look forward to a smooth medical transition for Esther and myself at home in Israel. Special thanks to the late Rabbi Avraham Lieder who worked tirelessly to introduce us to our outstanding medical team. Thanks again to everyone who had shared in this journey with us. We love you all and send you all a big hug!