Purdue News
Purdue News
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August 11, 2000 Father of convicted spy to speak at PurdueWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Morris Pollard, the father of Jonathan Pollard, who was sentenced to life in prison for spying for Israel, will speak about his son's case on the West Lafayette campus Aug. 23. His lecture, titled "A Dreyfus Affair - American Style," will be held from 12:30 p.m. to 1:20 p.m. in Room 320, Stewart Center. Pollard, who is a professor emeritus from the University of Notre Dame, has been speaking extensively about his son's case since the younger Pollard pled guilty to the indictment in 1987. The lecture is free and open to the public. Pollard will be comparing his son's life sentence to that of Alfred Dreyfus, a French army captain who was falsely accused of spying for Germany, found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1894. Dreyfus was later pardoned and then fully exonerated. The case attracted international attention because Dreyfus was a Jew. "Alfred Dreyfus was completely innocent. He was convicted by a kangaroo court of treason, and was never informed as to what the treason was, nor was the public informed, but he was given a life sentence," Morris Pollard said. Jonathan Pollard was indicted on a single count of transmitting classified information to Israel for the benefit of Israel, but he was prosecuted for having caused damage to the United States, not for the indictment, Morris Pollard said. "We don't know what kind of damage was done to the U.S. because it involved secret evidence, which was not shared with the defense. That's one of the main reasons that I say it's Dreyfus style," he said. Pollard's lecture is being sponsored by the Purdue Jewish Studies Program, and he is the first speaker to participate in JSP's Noon Lecture and Discussion Series for the 2000 - 2001 school year, said Sandor Goodhart, director of the Jewish Studies Program. During the presentation, Pollard will review his son's case and how it was managed. "I have traveled all over the U.S. and Europe to speak about this and keep this case alive. Support for Jonathan has been extensive in grass-roots Jewish communities. There is great interest in getting him out. There is a consensus that Jonathan was mistreated, based on new evidence," Pollard said. "I think the only way to get away from the politicians is to go to court, and we're trying to reopen this case in the courts because of new evidence." Jonathan Pollard is serving his life sentence in federal prison in Butner, N.C. Before being moved to Butner, he was held for seven years in solitary confinement in federal prison in Marion, Ill. "He has been terribly damaged," Pollard said. CONTACT: Sandor Goodhart, (765) 494-7965, goodhart@purdue.edu. NOTE TO JOURNALISTS: Morris Pollard will be available for interviews immediately following the lecture.
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