Lewites was born on December 24, 1939[1] in the San Felipe barrio of Jinotepe, the son of a Jewish immigrant from Poland (a candymaker) and a Catholic Nicaraguan.

[2] He joined the struggle against the Somoza dictatorship in 1958[citation needed] and went into exile in Brazil in 1960 with his father following Lewites’ participation in the military action taking of the Jinotepe and Diriamba headquarters.

[2] Outside of prison, he was highly effective and creative in his efforts, staging photography sessions to mislead the Somocistas about the whereabouts of key Sandinista fighters like Nora Astorga.

Following Ortega's third successive election defeat in 2001, Lewites advocated FSLN cooperation with President Enrique Bolaños in his struggle to hold ex-President Arnoldo Alemán accountable for corruption.

On July 2, 2006, it was reported that Lewites died of a massive heart attack at the Hospital Metropolitano "Vivian Pellas" in Managua, aged 66, four months prior to the 2006 national elections.

[1][3] His death sealed Ortega’s victory, as his 1998 pact with Arnoldo Alemán changed the election rules to require a candidate only exceed 35% of the vote to win without a runoff.

[2] His rectangular tomb depicts a Star of David with a Christian cross in the center and an epitaph, inscribed on marble, repeats a sentiment he was known for: "I was born under one dictatorship and I don't want to die under another.