Judge in Fla. orders Cuba to pay $27.5M to mother of journalist jailed in 2003

Judge: Cuba must pay $27.5M for jailing journalist

MIAMI — A judge in Miami has ordered the Cuban government to pay $27.5 million to the mother of a journalist jailed on the communist island since 2003.

U.S. District Judge Alan S. Gold awarded damages Wednesday in the case of Omar Rodriguez Saludes. Saludes is serving 27 years in prison under conditions described as deplorable and inhumane in court documents.

Saludes was among dozens of journalists and other Cuba critics arrested during a 2003 crackdown on dissent.

Cuban representatives in Washington did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment. Gold last year entered a default judgment against Cuba because it did not respond to the lawsuit.

Collecting damages against the Cuban government is difficult and often takes years.