U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), chairman of the House panel that oversees international human rights, will chair a congressional hearing Wednesday on the case of American Jacob Ostreicher, who has been held without formal charges in Bolivia since June 2011.

    Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson is in Cochabamba, Bolivia for a meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) General Assembly taking place from June 3-5. She has been invited to testify at Smith’s June 6 hearing, entitled “The U.S. State Department’s Inadequate Response to Human Rights Concerns in Bolivia: The Case of American Jacob Ostreicher,” but is not scheduled to attend.

    Smith was asked to become involved in the case by Ostreicher’s daughter, a Lakewood, N.J. resident who is a constituent in Smith’s congressional district.

Who:                Chairman Smith, and other members of the human rights subcommittee, and witnesses:

• Miriam Ungar, Mr. Ostreicher’s wife, of Brooklyn, NY
• Chaya Weinberger, Mr. Ostreicher’s daughter, Lakewood, NJ
• Steve Moore, former FBI Special Agent, known for his work in the Amanda Knox case in Italy.

When:             WEDNESDAY, June 6, at 10 a.m.

Where:            Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172