Justice Kennedy Clears Way for Deportation of 5 Cubans

A U.S. Supreme Court justice cleared the way today for the deportation of five Cubans who committed serious crimes after coming to the United States in the 1980 Mariel boat lift.

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy denied a last-minute emergency request by lawyers representing the Cubans seeking to block the deportations, now scheduled for Friday.

U.S. Justice Department officials said the departures were delayed a day to accommodate the Cuban government, which needed more time to prepare for the return of the five. They would be the first repatriations in more than three years.

In 1984, Cuba agreed to take back 2,746 of the 125,000 Cubans who came to the United States in a boat lift from the port of Mariel but it suspended the program in 1985. Both countries agreed to resume it in 1987.

The Cubans to be repatriated, most of whom had been convicted of crimes in the United States, became the subject of national attention a year ago after about 2,300 of them rioted at two federal prisons, setting fires and taking hostages.

After the riots, the Justice Department agreed to review each case. Last month, the first of those reviews ended with the Justice Department ordering the immediate deportation of 15 Cubans, including the five to be returned Friday.