“The US Supreme Court Monday refused to hear the case of five Cubans serving prison sentences for spying in the United States, effectively upholding their conviction by a lower court. The so-called ‘Cuban Five,’ regarded as political prisoners by Havana, had argued that they did not receive a fair trial in Miami in 2001 because of the strong anti-Castro sentiments there. In turning aside the case, the high court effectively upheld a decision by an federal appeals court in Atlanta in 2006 that reinstated their convictions and sentences and reversed an earlier order for a new trial. The Cubans were arrested in 1998 and convicted three years later. Three of the Cubans were sentenced to life in prison and the other two were given sentences that ranged from 15 to 19 years prison.” (06/15/09)