Earlier this month the United States Department of Justice issued a report accusing the Police Department of Puerto Rico of engaging in a pattern and practice of civil rights violations including suppressing free speech, using excessive and even deadly physical force when it was not warranted, and engaging in unlawful searches and seizures in violation of the Fourth Amendment.

From the report :

Indeed, the marked disconnect between residents and tactical officers, who routinely enter neighborhoods en masse with high-caliber rifles drawn amid children, seniors, and other bystanders, reveals PRPD’s reliance on law enforcement strategies that run counter to widely accepted models of community-oriented policing. Distressingly, an officer assigned to one of these units told us openly and without objection from his supervisors that officers need to violate civil rights to fight crime and meet the goals set by government officials. This conduct deprives the people of Puerto Rico of their rights guaranteed by the Constitution and federal law.

The report also points to ethnic profiling against Dominicans on the island, which is is important considering that Puerto Rico is a Secure Communities jurisdiction, meaning police officers check the immigration status of those they arrest.

In a police state, women are especially vulnerable, not just because of direct physical and sexual assault by law enforcement itself, but also by not acting when called to cases of sexual and physical assault. The Puerto Rican police are accused of failing to adequately police sex assault and domestic violence cases including spousal abuse by fellow officers.

The media coverage and response to the report has been interesting and points to a lack of understanding (perhaps willful) of the colonial relationship between the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The New York Times seems to be concerned by how the wealthy will react, since “violent crime has spilled into well-to-do areas”. Never mind how the overwhelming majority of the Puerto Rican people are feeling who are dealing not just with “street crime” caused by a number of factors, but with police repression, especially in the housing projects (as noted in the report) in addition to a constant FBI presence. The FBI itself has continuously been accused of spying on, unlawfully searching, and generally harassing people, especially those in the pro-independence movement.

Congressman Luis Gutierrez made a statement before Congress regarding the FBI report, asking for a special prosecutor and an apology from Puerto Rican Governor Fortuño.

The next step is usually a lawsuit, which either goes to trial or, if the local authorities agree to changes, may be settled on the day it is filed.

I am grateful for the report because it sheds additional light on the huge problem of police abuse in Puerto Rico, but I am wary of additional Federal intervention. It seems ironic to me to expect the Federal Department of Justice, who can be pointed at for the assassination of Puerto Rican leaders like Filiberto Ojeda Rios, to be the ones to ensue the civil and human rights of the Puerto Rican people. I would hope for the intervention of international bodies since Puerto Rico is a colony, and it seems to me no one wants to look at the role of colonialism in terms of crime, poverty, and corruption.