Haitian pastor dies in Miami police custody
By Linda
Breed
Miami
On June 2 some 2,000 people here protested the death of
Marc Dorvil, a Haitian pastor who died May 14 while in police
custody. The demonstration was organized by a broad group of
community organizations, including Veye Yo, which means
"Watch them"--as in "Keep your eyes on the police, the forces
of imperialism and all enemies of the people."
The main demand of the demonstration was for an
investigation of Dorvil's death by an independent civilian
review board. Guy Laurant, one of the organizers of the
demonstration, said, "We want justice, we want an independent
civilian investigation with community involvement."
The pastor was apparently arrested at 11:25 a.m. for
leaving the scene of a low-speed accident where no one was
hurt. He was subsequently "subdued" by eight officers. They
hogtied him and threw him, stomach down, into the back of a
police car.
Paramedics arrived. They treated police involved in the
scuffle but were not told about Dorvil.
The police car containing Pastor Dorvil arrived at Jackson
Memorial Hospital at 12:17 p.m. He was pronounced dead 30
minutes later.
There are unanswered questions in this case, as in many
cases before it of police brutality and deaths in police
custody. Many in the Haitian community feel that the police
version of events and the autopsy itself lack credibility.
They want answers and accountability from the police, the
medical examiner, the state attorney and the Miami media.
Speakers singled out the Miami Herald for special
criticism, for taking the police at their word without an
independ ent investigation to verify the cops' claims. The
newspaper is unpopular for the way it covers issues of police
brutality in the Black community.
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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