PRESS RELEASE
William Ramirez
Executive Director
ACLU Puerto Rico
(787)
753 8493
Date: Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Place: Puerto Rico Bar Association / Ochoteco Room, Ave. Ponce de León, Santurce, Puerto Rico
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Approximately one year ago the ACLU, with three Puerto Rico attorneys and three attorneys from our California based special project, set out to investigate allegations of crimes and abuse by police officers targeting homeless people around the island, including participants in needle exchange programs.
The ACLU found a barrage of crimes and human rights violations on a grand scale. We should soon be divulging our findings and any possible legal action, without discarding the possibility of filing a complaint with the appropriate international human rights forums to denounce what we consider to be a gross infringement of basic human rights by government agents against the most marginalized sectors of Puerto Rican society.
The ACLU has also been investigating allegations of racially motivated attacks by police officers against families in the Villa Cañona sector of the town of Loiza, Puerto Rico. Recently we participated in negotiations with high-ranking police officials and community leaders, and we are at this time providing legal counsel to various members of this community.
The ACLU’s findings has been the subject of a series of articles by reporter Maggie Bobb of the El Vocero newspaper, who independently confirmed our allegations, and have also been reported by Claridad and other Puerto Rican newspapers and news mediums. The government however has yet to react to the reported findings.
The recent execution style killing of a citizen of the town of Humacao, as well as other unnecessary and suspicious killings by police officers are not the exception as the Commonwealth government would have us believe. We at the ACLU of Puerto Rico believe that we have a police force that is out of control and a government and Police Chief that apparently is unaware of the magnitude of the problem.
The ACLU of Puerto Rico is calling a press conference to make public it’s recommendations in relation to the pervasive abuse, crimes and human rights violations committed against marginalized people in our community by officers of the Puerto Rico Police Department, and other abuses against unarmed citizens . The ACLU of Puerto Rico’s recommendations are being delivered to each member of the House of Representatives, as well as to Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, for their knowledge and consideration.
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