An appeal against the decision, by immigration judge James Vandello, is being filed on Ferry’s behalf.
A writ of habeas corpus has also been filed on behalf of Ferry, who has been imprisoned since Jan. 30.
Ferry was detained when he turned up for a green-card interview accompanied by his wife, Heaven Ferry. He has spent most of the time since in solitary confinement.
Ferry has opted against being housed with the general population in Denver County Jail, arguing that he is not a criminal.
In his ruling, a portion of which was posted on a website supporting Ferry’s asylum bid, Vandello referred to a previous asylum case involving another onetime member of the IRA.
Peter McMullen — also known as “Pete the Para” because he had served at one time in the British army’s Parachute Regiment — failed in his bid for asylum and was ultimately extradited from the U.S. in the spring of 1996.
Vandello, in his decision, cited a 1980s Board of Immigration Appeals decision against McMullen and indicated that it had a direct bearing on the Ferry case.
Vandello wrote: “The board stated that the respondent ‘by his active and effective membership’ had participated in the persecution of others and was therefore barred from receiving asylum.
“The board also categorized that respondent’s crimes as ‘serious non-political crimes’ and refused to apply the political offense exception. I find that the respondent’s offense constitutes a serious non-political crime. I further find that having been convicted of this offense, he has participated in the persecution of others.”
Vandello also ruled against Ferry’s asylum plea on the basis that he had filed his plea too late.
“I find that the respondent is a late filer and is barred from asylum for that reason. He has not shown changed circumstances nor extraordinary circumstances relating to the delay.”
The specter of the McMullen case overshadowing the asylum plea of another has borne out the prediction of the late activist and attorney Paul O’Dwyer.
McMullen was shunned by the Irish-American community even as he languished in prison for more years than IRA man Joe Doherty. McMullen had claimed that he had fled Northern Ireland to escape the IRA, which had accused him of racketeering.
Despite his unpopularity — glaring against the backdrop of strong community support for Doherty — O’Dwyer warned that failure to support McMullen in his legal battles opened the way for precedent to be set in the McMullen case, and for such precedent to be used against other Irish republicans seeking refuge in the U.S.
O’Dwyer’s fears have now been confirmed in the case of Ferry. Deanna Turner, a spokeswoman for the Irish American Unity Conference, said that the decision to refuse asylum would mean that the campaign on Ferry’s behalf would now have to be stepped up.
“We’ll have to work doubly hard to educate America that Irish immigrants who believe their country should be freed from the tyranny we fought against are not the enemy,” Turner said.
When he turned up for his green-card interview in January, Ferry was questioned about a prison term he served in Northern Ireland for IRA-related activities in the early 1990s.
Ferry was arrested in Belfast in 1993 after two guns and ammunition were found in a car in which he was a passenger. He was sentenced to 22 years but was
released in 2000 under the terms of the Good Friday agreement. Ferry did not reveal that he had been in prison when he first entered the U.S.
Ferry, who is 31, was detained at the green-card interview by immigration officers. His asylum plea, heard by Vandello in August, was a legal counter move against a deportation order that followed his arrest.
Ferry’s initial detention was specifically based on a charge that he had overstayed his U.S. visa. His attorney, Jeff Joseph, has countered that he had in fact obtained labor authorization and was permitted an extended stay in the U.S. pending his green card interview.
The Ferrys have a 2-year-old daughter, Fiona. The couple had lived in Belfast for a time but decided to settle in Arvada, Colo., after Ciaran Ferry’s name was found by police on a loyalist death list.
During the August asylum hearing, Ferry stated that the FBI had offered to have him freed from jail if he gave information, but that he had declined in part on the grounds that such a move would endanger his relatives in the North.
In response to Vandello’s ruling, Heaven Ferry, an Arkansas native and member of the Irish Northern Aid chapter in Denver, is now expected to undertake a speaking tour of several cities.
Deanna Turner said that a meeting had been arranged in Washington, D.C., next week between Heaven Ferry and Rep. Donald Payne of New Jersey, who has been active on Northern Ireland-related issues.