Biography
Rafael Ayala Ayala was arrested during Vieques anti-Navy civil disobedience on April 28, 2001 and transferred to MDC Guaynabo late on April 29. The First Circuit’s opinion in United States v. Ayala Ayala records this pretrial custody and a 30-day prison sentence following the consolidated July 6, 2001 trial. Associated Press reporting corroborates the sentence.
The 30 days describe the sentence, rather than a verified total of time served. Contemporary reporting says execution of Ayala’s sentence was delayed for medical treatment; the July sentencing date is not treated as the start of that sentenced imprisonment. The precise completion and release dates remain unestablished.
The First Circuit affirmed the convictions of Rafael Ayala Ayala, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Dennis Hickey Rivera and Armando Torres Ortiz on April 29, 2002. All four had been arrested April 28, 2001 and received 30-day sentences after a consolidated July 6 trial before Judge Héctor M. Laffitte. For Ayala and Torres Ortiz, the opinion traces military custody from about 11:20 a.m. through transfer to MDC Guaynabo late April 29 and magistrate presentment more than 51 hours after arrest. Presentment was not a discharge or proof that the entire sentence had been served. Source: https://media.ca1.uscourts.gov/pdf.opinions/01-2148-01A.pdf#page=1
