Landlord takes stand in immigration case

Carolyn Hileman - The Voice* | June 27, 2008

A Lexington landlord charged with harboring illegal immigrants at two apartment complexes testified on Thursday that he never intentionally violated any immigration laws. But he said he took steps to keep costs down and make money in a growing Hispanic area.

“Have job, will rent. That was my policy,” said William Jerry Hadden, 69, during his testimony in U.S. District Court.

Hadden is charged with 24 counts of harboring illegal immigrants, 24 counts of encouraging illegal immigrants to remain in the country and five counts of money laundering. Hadden and his son, Jamey, who is in Vietnam, rented to 60 undocumented immigrants at Woodridge and Cross Keys apartments. The case will likely go to the jury Friday.

Prosecutors say that Hadden intentionally marketed to illegal immigrants and knowingly rented apartments to them in order to make money. Defense attorneys say that Hadden was not intentionally harboring illegal immigrants because he did not bring them to the United States and did not force them to stay or hide.

Looking directly at the jury, Hadden described his desire to make a nice investment with his son and laid out the events that led to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents rummaging through his files and carrying away boxes from his management office.

When Jerry and Jamey Hadden closed on the apartment properties in 1998, Jerry Hadden said he wanted to be sure there was a return on the investment made possible in part by loans from his wife and parents.

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