Reno working with intermediaries on possible Elian transfer deal

WASHINGTON - Attorney General Janet Reno worked with outside intermediaries in Miami Friday on a possible agreement that would transfer custody of Elian Gonzalez from his Miami relatives to his father immediately, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.

''These parties are still working out the details of such a plan,'' Justice spokeswoman Carole Florman said. ''It has not been presented to Juan Miguel Gonzalez,'' the 6-year-old shipwreck survivor's Cuban father.

Florman would not identify the intermediaries other than as members of the Miami community. She said they were in contact with Elian's great-uncle Lazaro Gonzalez and his family, who have defied Reno's order to transfer Elian.

But a Justice official could not say whether the Miami relatives, with whom the boy has stayed since he was found in the Atlantic last Thanksgiving clinging to an inner tube, had specifically agreed to immediate transfer of Elian to his father's custody.

The insistence of the government and the father on immediate transfer has been the sticking point in the negotiations, because the Miami relatives have demanded continued discussion of whether Elian should be turned over. The relatives lost a U.S. District Court battle and an appeals court, which ruled that Elian cannot leave this country until it hears the case, did not bar Reno from switching custody.

Florman said the sketchy plan presented to Reno by the intermediaries called for ''a cooperative resolution that would include an immediate transfer of Elian to his father's care.''

''The Justice Department would welcome a real agreement that could achieve our goal of reuniting Elian with his father in a voluntary manner,'' Florman said.

Juan Miguel Gonzalez and his lawyer were aware that the plan was being worked on, but had not been presented with any details, a Justice official said. Reno has agreed to present the detailed plan to the father as soon as possible if one can be worked out, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The plan still had significant gaps, the official added, but the intermediaries were working quickly. The work began even before Reno met Friday afternoon at the Justice Department with Juan Miguel Gonzalez, but it was not clear whether any mention was made of it in their 15-minute session.

Meantime, no progress was made at a secret meeting Friday in Miami between mediators from the Justice Department's Community Relations Service and Lazaro Gonzalez and his daughter, Marisleysis, who helps care for Elian, according to a source familiar with the session held at a church.

The meeting, also attended by a local radio station owner, was an effort by the government to reach out to the relatives, but the great-uncle and his daughter said they would not turn over the boy, this source said.

Virtually out of options, Reno also awaited word Friday from her law enforcement agents in Miami on the best time for them to remove Elian from his Florida relatives.

While Reno clung to hope for a last-minute negotiated turnover, she could not give even the father a timetable at their meeting for a reunion with his son.

Meantime, Justice officials said key federal marshals and immigration agents were being positioned in Miami where Cuban exiles crowd the street outside the home of Lazaro Gonzalez. The boy has stayed there since Thanksgiving when he was found in the ocean after a boat carrying his mother and other Cubans capsized, killing her and 10 others.

The exiles, motivated by hatred for Cuban leader Fidel Castro, have vowed to form a human chain to block Elian's removal. For days, federal agents have been assessing the crowd's patterns of activity and consulting with local police.

Florman said earlier Friday that the attorney general was ''looking to our law enforcement officials to determine the best timing and methods'' for removing Elian from Lazaro Gonzalez's home.

Outside the great-uncle's house, dozens of exiles prayed; others bore 6-foot wooden crosses representing Jesus' crucifixion on Good Friday. Most of them said it would be a mistake for the federal government to try to remove Elian by force.

Before word of a possible deal emerged late Friday, federal officials had said an operation to retrieve Elian was possible this weekend but was more likely next week, because of the time required to prepare it and a reluctance to risk violence over Easter.

After meeting with Reno, Juan Miguel Gonzalez and his attorney, Greg Craig, walked grimly from the building without comment.

In a written statement, Reno said she told him ''that I could not commit to a particular course of action or timetable.''

The father, who came here from Cuba two weeks ago to pick up his son, expressed great concern for the boy and appealed to her for quick action to effect a reunion, Reno said.

''I was deeply moved by Mr. Gonzalez's evident love for his son,'' Reno said. ''I assured him I would continue working toward the goal of reuniting him with his child.''

Earlier, she told reporters, ''I'm exploring every possibility I can to see this resolved peacefully, promptly and properly.''

Asked if she was on the verge of ordering law enforcement agents to pick up Elian, Reno replied, ''If I were going to do something like that, I certainly wouldn't tell you.''

At the White House, spokesman Joe Lockhart said the turnover ''should be now done in a prompt and orderly way.'' President Clinton spoke with Reno about the case for 45 minutes Wednesday night, but Lockhart labeled as inaccurate news stories suggesting he was pushing her to use force.

Lockhart said a ''good volume'' of calls was received on the White House comment line Thursday night, ''overwhelmingly in favor of reuniting the boy with his father.'' The Justice Department received more than 7,000 telephone calls after Juan Miguel Gonzalez made a televised appeal Thursday afternoon for Americans to urge Reno and Clinton to act quickly.