A Rockville resident from Liberia whose charges of child sex abuse were dismissed when no interpreter could be found will face an immigration hearing Wednesday that could lead to his deportation.
Mahamu Kanneh, 23, is in “good health and is detained in [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] custody pending the outcome of removal proceedings,” ICE spokesman Marc Raimondi said in an e-mail Monday.
Kanneh was transferred to ICE custody last month after a judge released him on his own recognizance following a bail hearing in Montgomery County Circuit Court. Officials with the Executive Office for Immigration Review said Wednesday’s court proceedings will be the second immigration court appearance for Kanneh, and the day’s events will be similar to an arraignment.
The court’s Notice to Appear charges Kanneh with being present in the United States without admission, according to ICE officials.
Kanneh has been at the center of intense media coverage since a judge dismissed nine child sex abuse charges against him in mid-July, ruling his right to a speedy trial had been violated. The trial was delayed while the court attempted to locate an interpreter who spoke Vai, a rare West African language. Although several interpreters were found, none could commit to the trial. Prosecutors are appealing that dismissal, but the appeal is not expected to occur until February.
During a 2006 hearing in which Kanneh’s attorneys told judges he needed an interpreter, public defender Theresa Chernosky said Kanneh was from Liberi, but came to the U.S. in 2001 from a refugee camp in Ghana.
“I can’t tell if there’s just language or a mental health issue,” Chernosky told judges in court transcripts. “And the reason for the mental health concern is because of his background and the family mental health issues that exist, the fact that he came over here on a refugee status, was in a refugee camp.”
EOIR spokeswoman Susan Eastwood said immigration officials hope to have ruled on Kanneh’s immigration status prior to the criminal appeal.
“We want to make sure we get all of our stuff done first,” Eastwood said, “so if he is freed and removable [after the state’s appeal], then ICE can pick him up and do what they need to do.”
Under federal law, if someone deportable is convicted of a crime, that person serves the sentence first and is then deported.
Chernosky’s office said she has been attempting to find Kanneh legal counsel for his civil immigration proceedings, but Eastwood said no immigration lawyer is listed for Kanneh at this time.
