DRUG CASE COULD FORCE DEPORTATION

Immigration agents faced off with a group of Quad-City Mallards
players in a Davenport apartment complex parking lot early Thursday
over drug possession charges that could lead to deportation of three
of the team's top players.

Those players -- Iannique Renaud, Patrick Nadeau and Michael Melas --
all three citizens of Canada, face charges of marijuana possession in
connection with a January incident.

As a group of Mallards players were returning from Wednesday night's
game to their homes in the Kimberly Club Apartments about 2 a.m.
Thursday, two

Immigration and Naturalization Service, or INS, agents asked to speak
with the three men who have been charged and demanded to see their
visas.

Gerald Noland, an INS special supervisory agent from Cedar Rapids,
Iowa, explained to the group that he needed to check the visas of
Renaud, Melas and Nadeau to determine their immigration status in the
United States.

"Our visit here is mainly because of their recent run-in with the
law," said. "If they don't have the right type of paperwork, they
could be subject to deportation based on their arrest for drug
possession."

INS determined during the visit that the three Mallards players have
visas allowing them to remain in the United States for now, despite
their recent drug arrests. However, if they are convicted of the
charges, they could be subject to deportation, he said.

Noland also said his office is in the process of determining whether
any of the three players have criminal records in Canada. He said
prior offenses also could make the players subject to
deportation.

In this case, the three hockey players have H2B visas. Under an H2B
visa, immigrants convicted of even one offense can be deported, no
matter how much or how little of an illegal drug they possessed. The
players do not have green cards.

Under federal immigration law, legal immigrants with green cards --
documents giving them legal residence in the Unites States -- who are
convicted of possessing 28 grams or less of marijuana are permitted to
stay in the country, unless they have previous convictions, which
would make them subject to immediate deportation.

Police allege that Nadeau, Renaud and Melas were caught with one gram
of marijuana during a Jan. 22 gathering at an apartment shared by
Renaud and Melas at 3328 E. Kimberly Road, Davenport. A gram of the
substance is less than one marijuana cigarette. Noland said it is
common for immigrants holding H2B visas to be deported after being
convicted of even minor drug offenses.

A group of Mallards already had been alerted that INS agents would be
waiting to speak with the accused men after the team's 5-3 loss
Wednesday night to the Adirondack IceHawks. The players arrived home
with Mallards attorney Bill Dailey and team vice president Howard Cornfield.

Nadeau and Renaud were among six players stopped by INS agents in the
complex parking lot. However, Melas, who is still recovering from a
skating injury, was bedridden Thursday, Cornfield said.

After being approached by the agents, Cornfield instructed Renaud and
Nadeau to go inside their apartments and gather their necessary
documentation. Cornfield also promised the agents that although Melas
was unable to come down to the parking lot, he could produce the
necessary paperwork, too.

"We are here to comply fully," Cornfield told Noland. "If you had just
called me, I would have had you over to my office and we could have
straightened it out there."

Noland said it is INS procedure to confront immigrants directly when
there is a question about their immigration status.

"We have to actually face the person," he said. "We have to make sure
the person relates to the documents and has them readily available.
That's the law."

Nadeau returned a few minutes later, displaying a H2B visa, which
allows immigrants to live in the country without establishing
residency as long they work for the particular company that petitioned
for their entry into the country.

Renaud returned from his apartment about 2:15 a.m., explaining to
Cornfield and Noland that he could not find all of his paperwork.

"If he doesn't have everything, we might have to take him in," said
another INS agent, Duane Rogers, who accompanied Noland to Davenport.

Renaud went back into his apartment and returned a few minutes later,
displaying his H2B visa.

"You've just saved yourself a trip to Cedar Rapids," Cornfield
said.

"Thank God!" Renaud replied.

But Noland said the three players are not completely in the clear.
They are scheduled to be arraigned on the drug possession charges
March 3 in Scott County District Court.

"We're talking about a zero-tolerance situation here," he said. "We
will be watching what happens with their court case very closely."

Cornfield expressed support for his players after the exchange with
the INS agents. And Mallards player Rob DeCiantis said the entire team
is sticking by the accused men.

"These are just allegations right now," he said. "They're part of our
family, so we stick with them. We stay with our family to the end."