CANADIAN CAUGHT IN U.S. PRISON LIMBO

Americans OK Transfer From 'Tough' Jail, But Canada Fears Man Will
Return To Organized Crime

The Harper government has denied an Alberta man's bid for a transfer
from a U.S. jail to a Canadian prison on the grounds that he may one
day commit a crime.

Brent James Curtis, 28, is in a privately-run, for-profit prison in
California serving 57 months after pleading guilty to a $1-million
U.S. drug trafficking conspiracy in 2007.

It was his first offence and he pleaded guilty to it right away,
saying he was drawn to so-called easy money. He told his family that
he didn't feel right mounting a defence because he was guilty.

The one-time elite hockey player -- benched from any chance in the
NHL after getting hit by a truck -- makes an interesting argument to
win a prison transfer, saying not only that he wants to serve the
remainder of his sentence -- two years -- closer to his family and
support network, but that if he isn't transferred, he will return
home after completing his U.S. sentence without a criminal record in Canada.

The Correctional Service of Canada has confirmed that if Curtis
doesn't get a transfer and serves out his term in the U.S., he will
return home "a free man" without a criminal record in the system.

But if the Harper government approves the transfer, which the U.S.
administration has already done, Curtis would, in fact, have a
criminal record in the Canadian criminal system.

Curtis has also used the very root of the international prisoner
transfer treaty in his request, notably that it was founded on
rehabilitation and reintegration into the community -- something the
Harper government has now dismissed.

"This is a tough place. I'm losing everything, every day," said
Curtis, one of a dozen Canadians in the California private prison,
known for its warring Mexican drug gangs. He has not been afforded
any rehabilitation programs or schooling.

"The weird thing about this all is that I am coming home regardless
of getting the transfer. My release date is 2011. If I do not get the
transfer I will have zero rehabilitation and never get fingerprinted
by Canada," said Curtis, who intends to go back to school upon his return.

"Wouldn't Peter van Loan (Canada's public safety minister) want me to
receive supervision on parole and programs to help me re-integrate
into Canada?"

If he did get into trouble with the law in Canada, Curtis would be
treated as a first-time offender. "The public safety minister's
tough-on-crime stance really seems short sighted to me."

Van Loan has signed a rejection letter saying that because Curtis's
role was a "money man" and "transporter" in the drug conspiracy, he
has "already taken several steps down the road towards involvement in
a criminal organization offence. Given the nature of the applicant's
acts, I believe that he may, after the transfer, commit a criminal
organization offence."

But according to U.S. authorities, Curtis was not, in fact, the
"money man" -- rather a courier for the money man in the Miami
cocaine conspiracy. In a sentencing hearing, U.S. authorities
described Curtis as a "minor participant."

His U.S. lawyer, Marc Seitles, has worked on several international
transfer cases, and says "Of all the countries, I cannot believe that
Canada, a country seemingly known to be more humane than the United
States, won't let one of its Canadian citizens come home, especially
a bright kid like Brent."

In Calgary hockey circles, Curtis is known as a former elite player
who, despite his career setback, went on to volunteer as a triple-A
coaching assistant to help young athletes get good enough to make the NHL.

In a letter of support filed with a U.S. court for a sentencing
hearing, Jim Finney, a coach for Minor Midget AAA Blackhawks, wrote
about the impact Curtis had as a volunteer coach on the team:

"The passion that Brent showed for each of the kids will stay with
them for the rest of their lives. In a volunteer position such as
this one, the rewards were not financial, but rather emotional. Brent
was emotionally invested in the team, and that was abundantly clear
to anyone that saw him."

Donna Cornaccia, the team's director, said that Curtis has a
"genuineness about him which is imperative when dealing with youth,
they have the ability to see through a false presentation and can
quickly identify when an adult is not being sincere. Brent has had a
huge positive impact on many of these young adults. He has been a
confidant and a trustworthy person for whom these youth can go to if
needed ... Brent is a compassionate, kind and considerate individual
whom I am proud to know."

Curtis not only had a reputation as a tough hockey player in Calgary,
but made a point of publicly speaking out against drugs -- especially
when it came to his sister's "druggie" friends. As an athlete, he
repeatedly told his sister to stay clear of drugs.

The son of a high school teacher, Curtis became a day trader at the
age of 25, only to find out he wasn't that good at it.

"Unfortunately, I had trouble earning a living and made the horrible
error of trying to make fast, illegal money," he said.

Through an old friend, Curtis, at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, was
recruited in 2007 to be the wheelman for the purchaser. He drove the
car to a Miami parking lot, where they met the cocaine dealer who was
actually a police informant. Then, after the purchaser tested a
sample of the buy, the police swooped in and arrested him, along with Curtis.

The Alberta man is one of about 12 Canadians doing time in California
City prison, which houses predominantly Mexican criminals, and since
the crackdown on drug cartels, warring gangs have rioted, according
to Curtis and another Canadian inmate who spoke to the Citizen.

The inmates say that in the past three months, the prison has been
locked down a total of 47 days, meaning they spend about 23 hours a
day inside their cells, where they are also fed.

The inmates say all 12 Canadians have written the Canadian government
for relief without success.

"We have been in the middle of a Mexican drug cartel war which has
spilled into the prison. We all fear for our safety and if or when
one of us does get hurt, no one can say that we did not warn them,"
Curtis said.

Van Loan said he is not at liberty to comment on specific cases.

The minister, through a spokesman, told the Citizen:

"This government is committed to the safety and security of
Canadians, and Canadians who commit crimes abroad should know that
they run the risk of facing justice in the other country's criminal
and correctional system. For privacy reasons, we cannot comment on
specific cases. What I can tell you is each application for transfer
back to Canada is carefully considered and decisions on transfer
cases are made in accordance with the terms of the International
Transfer of Offenders Act."

The California prison, run by Corrections Corp. of America, is
located about two hours north of Los Angeles.