As Elian's Miami relatives continued to negotiate with federal officials, leaders in the exile community practiced ways to prevent the boy's repatriation.
Prosecutors said Mr. Peeler had directed his brother, Adrian, to carry out the killings to prevent the boy from testifying against him in another murder case.
The authorities say that the defendant, Adrian Peeler, shot Leroy Brown Jr. and his mother, Karen Clarke, to prevent the boy from testifying against Mr. Peeler's brother, Russell, in a murder trial.
The man, Russell Peeler Jr., 28, is accused of directing his brother, Adrian, to shoot Leroy Brown Jr., 8, and the boy's mother, Karen Clarke, on Jan . 7 , 1999to prevent the boy from testifying as an eyewitness to the murder of Ms. Clarke's boyfriend, Rudolph Snead Jr.
A state prosecutor accused Colonel Steele, a former Hernando County sheriff's deputy, of physically and verbally abusing his 11-year-old stepson for homework errors, and of padlocking the family's refrigerator and food cabinets to prevent the boy from eating, according to court records.
In an interview today, Mr. Craig said he felt strongly that Mr. Gonzalez should be peacefully and quickly reunited with his son; he had harsh words for the Cuban-Americans in Miami threatening to try to prevent the boy's return to Cuba.
Instead, he believes they were a measure aimed at preventing the boy from self harm not an attempt to humiliate or punish.
Several of the boys' lawyers told the judge today that they would seek to prevent the boys' statements to the police from being used at trial.
