22326: (Hermantin)Miami-Herald-Guilty plea in enslaved girl case (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Posted on Wed, Jun. 09, 2004



PEMBROKE PINES


Guilty plea in enslaved girl case

By SARA OLKON

solkon@herald.com


A South Florida woman faces up to 10 years in prison after admitting her
role in the mistreatment of a Haitian girl, who said she was beaten, raped
and enslaved in the woman's Pembroke Pines home.

The girl was 12.

The woman's husband, also charged, remains a fugitive from justice, as does
their son.

The highly unusual prosecution of Marie and Willy Pompee shed light on the
plight of so-called restavecs, impoverished Haitian youngsters, male or
female, who work as virtual slaves for wealthier Haitian families. The
Creole word meaning ''to stay with'' describes a form of servitude broadly
accepted on the island. It is believed that there are as many as 300,000
restavecs in Haiti.

But, until the Pompee case surfaced, it was not known that restavecs could
be living secret lives in South Florida. The discovery provoked an
outpouring of sadness, outrage -- and support for the troubled little girl.

A Haitian-born author, Jean-Robert Cadet, was asked to talk to Haitian
students about his childhood of servitude, and to urge them to speak up if
they were being similarly exploited.

The 12-year-old told authorities she was just 9 when first brought to the
United States by the Pompees and pressed into involuntary servitude in their
$400,000 home. Her mother, a maid for relatives of the Pompees, had just
died of AIDS.

The sexual abuse came at the hands of the Pompees 20-year-old son, she said.

Marie Pompee pleaded guilty in federal court to harboring the child. Her
sentencing is scheduling for July 1. She could face up to a decade in prison
and a fine of $250,000.

Willy Pompee, who ran a popular Hialeah used clothing outlet, Willy's Rags,
may have fled to Haiti, along with is son, who faces sexual battery charges.

The story might never have been told had the girl not called in response to
a television commercial for a modeling school and confided in the people who
picked up the phone. At first her story sounded unbelievable but the facts
checked out.

She told authorities she was fed very little, forced to clean house, made to
sleep on the floor and repeatedly sexually assaulted by ''stepbrother,''
Willy Pompee Jr. The girl said she was called a ''slut'' and ''whore,'' and
told she was ugly and stupid.

Medical tests showed she was sexually abused and had contracted gonorrhea.

Today she lives with a foster family in Miramar. Now 16, the girl dubbed
''Little Hope'' by some members of the community, struggles with self-esteem
issues and schoolwork. She hopes to be an attorney someday.

''She has problems making friends,'' said Opa-locka police officer Cheryl
Odom, among the first to take the abuse allegations seriously. ``She thinks
other girls don't like her.''

Marie Pompee, who now lives in North Miami, denies ever mistreated the girl,
the woman's lawyer said.

''It appeared this child was either harmed by Marie's son or the child has
problems we are not aware of,'' said Martin Roth. ``Ms. Pompee did not know
and would have done something about it. She really loved this child.''

The Pompee case aside, human rights experts fear that worsening economic and
social conditions in Haiti will add to the ranks of restavecs.

While slavery was abolished in Haiti in 1804, desperate parents are still
willing to turn over their children to upper-class families in the hope they
get a better life.

Jean Robert Lafortune, chair of the Haitian-American Justice Coalition in
Miami, estimates that there are at least 300,000 restavecs working in Haiti.

''Rape is also part of it -- it's expected,'' he said. As for the eventual
prosecution of Willy Pompee and his son, Lafortune was dubious.

''It's highly unlikely that anything will happen to them,'' he said. ``In
Haiti, there are so many more priorities in terms of survival.''

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