Past may KO boxer's U.S. return

A professional boxer with a shot at a world title asked Illinoisofficials Wednesday to pardon him for an armed robbery he committedhere as a 17-year-old street gang member.

Jesus "El Matador" Chavez, who was known as Gabriel Sandovalwhen he stuck up a West Side grocery while a student at Wells HighSchool, needs the pardon to enhance his chances of being allowed toreturn to the United States.

Under threat of deportation by U.S. immigration officials forhis 1990 conviction, Chavez moved to his native Mexico in October andcan't come back until he straightens out his immigration status, saidhis attorney, Mark Kadish.Family, friends and business associates of Sandoval, includingboxing promoter Lou Duva, pleaded his case Wednesday before theIllinois Prisoner Review Board. They argued that Sandoval is a solidcitizen who should be forgiven for what Kadish called a "youthfulindiscretion.""I was here for Jesus Chavez, the man, to give him a chance inlife," said Duva, who denied that his company's business relationshipwith Chavez gave him an economic incentive to support the fighter."I don't care if he ever boxes again, even though I think he could beworld champion."But Colin Simpson, an assistant Cook County state's attorney,urged board members to reject the pleas, arguing that it is a federalmatter and that Chavez has an "economic motive" to return to theUnited States."This man could ply his trade anywhere in the free world. He'sgoing to make more money here," Simpson said.Chavez, 25, the top-ranked contender in the World BoxingCouncil's super featherweight division, sent a videotape because heis not allowed on U.S. soil.The Prisoner Review Board will make a recommendation to Gov.Edgar within two weeks on whether Chavez deserves clemency, boardChairman James K. Williams said.Chavez was born in Chihuahua, Mexico, and moved here illegallywith his family when he was about 8, Kadish said. While othermembers of his family took advantage of an amnesty program later tobecome U.S. citizens, Chavez did not.Chavez and two others were arrested in 1990 for robbing agrocery at Damen and Chicago with a sawed-off shotgun. He confessed,pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison. Upon hisrelease in 1994, he was deported to Mexico under federal law, but hesneaked back into the United States.Although his family lives in Chicago, Chavez moved to Austin,Texas, where he resumed the boxing career he had started here withgreat promise as a teenager. Texas authorities discovered hisillegal status when he applied for a driver's license.Kadish said Chavez wants to return to the United States to benear his family and girlfriend and to take advantage of more moderntraining facilities. He said Chavez has experienced a "second birth"in Austin, where he spoke to high-risk teenagers and completed hishigh school education. A Texas congressman and state senator sentletters of support.