As per usual, I was up early this morning checking my e-mail when I received a note from a fellow TownHall staffer - it reads as follows:

Hi Kevin-
I met you at the Salem Radio Convention in D.C. last year—I'm the graphic designer for Townhall.com. My cousin, Eric Volz, was convicted in Nicaragua of a brutal rape/murder and sentenced to 30 years. However, he was 2 hours away from the crime scene, with signed affidavits, witnesses that testified on his behalf, cell phone and instant messenger transcripts and a car rental receipt indicating so. The judge threw out all of this evidence and convicted him, anyway.

The family is worried for his life--word on the street is that he will be killed as to resolve this situation. He's currently in a prison you and I wouldn't board our dogs in.

If you could be of any assistance to bring anyone's attention to this matter, I think it's important. We should be able to assist our country's citizens that are being abused by other governments and inform people that it is not safe for Americans in other countries if even our embassies and diplomats can do nothing to protect is in a situation such as Eric's.

I appreciate your time and help. I can email you additional materials such as a facts statement, or you can find it on the web site:
www.friendsofericvolz.com

Thank you.

In looking through the site I did find the story and it seems just down right rotten. Read it over... write a letter of support and contact Congressional representatives...

Here's the barebones of it all...

Doris Ivanez Jimenez was murdered on Tuesday, November 21, 2006, between 11:45 am and 1:00 pm, inside a clothing store she owned, Sol Fashion, in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua.

On the day of her murder, Eric Volz was over two (2) hours away in Managua. The proof that Eric was in Managua and innocent of this crime is conclusive. Many witnesses have given written statements and will testify that Eric was in Managua on the day of the murder. These statements are available to anyone who would like to review them. In addition to these many eyewitnesses, no physical evidence exists that would connect Eric to this murder.

Throughout the evening of November 20, 2006, Eric was in Managua at the house where he lived. Eric's house also serves as the offices of EP magazine, a bilingual Central American magazine. Eric awoke there the morning of November 21, 2006, and entered the office area at around 9:15 am. The housekeeper, a security guard and no fewer than five EP workers were there at the time, saw Eric, and have given written statements confirming this fact. Eric's defense counsel has these written statements, which are available for anyone to review.

At around 10:30 am, Eric received a visit from Maria Mercedes, who works at Etica y Transparencia, a non-profit organization. Maria had been on the cover of the launch issue of EP. Maria Mercedes brought along a friend and they met with Eric at the offices for about half an hour, until approximately 11:00 am.

Around 11:30 am, Eric met with Ricardo Castillo, a potential contributing editor who is a journalist working with diverse foreign media including the BBC of London and America Economia. Several EP workers observed the meeting with Castillo. This meeting also included a telephone conference call with Castillo and a business contact in Atlanta, Georgia (USA), Nick Purdy.

This 54-minute conference call ended at 1:15 pm and is documented by phone records that are available to anyone who wishes to review them. Also available are Nick Purdy's personal notes and instant messages (IM) from Eric showing that in total the two were engaged in intensive, back and forth business communications from approximately 9:21 am until 2:07 pm. In addition to these telephone records, cell phone records for Eric's cell phone also confirm Eric's use of his cell phone in Managua that day.

Eric then had lunch with Mr. Castillo and an EP employee at the same house in Managua. The lunch, prepared by the housekeeper, Martha Aguirre, was witnessed by other EP colleagues. Castillo left the house around 1:30 pm. Mr. Castillo and Mr. Purdy have provided written statements that are also available for anyone's review.

Eric was at his house in Managua with at least five people when he received the tragic news that Doris was dead. Around that same time, 2:30 pm, yet another witness arrived, a hair stylist who had been previously scheduled to be there. She, too, saw Eric at the house in Managua.

At about 3 pm, Eric rented a car, as he had done many other times, to get to San Juan del Sur and help Doris' family. Although Eric had a car in Managua, the rental vehicle was better suited to pass slow traffic on the road to San Juan. The car was delivered by the rental agency to the Managua house. Eric did not meet with the rental car staff himself. One of his employees brought the rental car credit vouchers inside the house for Eric to sign. Eric's Nicaraguan counsel has copies of the vouchers showing that Eric signed the credit voucher for the car. Cell phone records show that Eric was using his cell phone in the greater Managua area until 4:31 pm that afternoon. On his way to San Juan del Sur, Eric went to Rivas to pick up Doris' father, Ivan Jimenez. They then proceeded to San Juan del Sur where Eric assisted the family with Doris' funeral arrangements and attended her funeral.

After her funeral, Eric stayed in San Juan and pressed the police to take action. On November 23, 2006, Eric was arrested for the murder. The prosecution alleges that Eric was in San Juan del Sur at the time of the crime and that he, along with two others, raped and killed Doris. Despite the conclusive proof that Eric was in Managua at the time of the crime, he remains imprisoned pending a trial now set on January 26, 2007. While in prison, Eric at least twice has been physically threatened, and on one occasion Eric was almost killed by a mob of over 200 outside the courthouse.