The body of 19-year-old Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado was found by the side of the road in Cayey, a city near the victim’s hometown of Caguas, Puerto Rico on Nov 13. He was partially burned, decapitated and with both arms and legs dismembered from his torso.
News of the case first made it rounds when bloggers publicised an unvetted report that appeared on CNN’s citizen journalism website, iReport, on Nov 15. Titled “Brutal gay hate crime murder in PR not being covered,” the report posted by a 24-year-old Christopher Pagan quoted local Spanish-language newspapers as saying that the victim was openly gay and a police investigator who told a local paper that the victim deserved what he got because of the “type of lifestyle” he was leading.
News of the brutal slaying has reverberated throughout the gay and lesbian community in the United States as bloggers and observers immediately condemned the investigator's comment, and demanded that he be removed from the case due to his bias. A Facebook page called "Justice for Jorge Steven Lopez - End Hate Crimes" has been started to demand an investigation by Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno and prosecution of the slaying under the Federal Hate Crimes Law. As Puerto Rico is a US territory, federal agencies have jurisdiction over the group of islands located in the northeastern Caribbean.
International news wires and CNN have since followed up on the case in which a 26-year-old male suspect identified by Primera Hora newspaper as Juan A. Martínez has been arrested on early Tuesday morning.
According to gay news blog Pam's House Blend which translated a report on El Nuevo Dia.com, the website of a Puerto Rican newspaper, police have found a wig, a burned mattress, a PVC water pipe that was burned, a knife, and blood stains on the wall of the suspect’s backyard.
US-based GLBT civil rights group Equality Forum on Tuesday called on US Attorney General Eric Holder to have the FBI investigate.
“The Matthew Shepard Amendment empowers and requires the federal government to prosecute this horrific murder,” said Malcolm Lazin, Executive Director, Equality Forum in a statement, referring to the new legislation that President Obama signed the bill into law on Oct 28, 2009.
The federal hate crimes act enables federal agents to investigate hate crimes, especially where there does not appear that a full and fair investigation will be undertaken.
Puerto Rican gay activist Pedro Julio Serrano stated, “It is inconceivable that the investigating officer suggests that the victim deserved his fate, like a woman deserves rape for wearing a short skirt.”
"The brutality of the slaying and the fact that he was openly gay leads us to believe it was very possibly a hate crime.” Serrano was quoted as saying by CNN.
“Equality Forum joins Puerto Rican activists in condemning the statements of the investigator and calls on Police Superintendent Figueroa Sancha to terminate the officer,” stated Lazin, a former federal prosecutor; who had received the US Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award, the department’s highest annual honour. “It is clear that without federal intervention, there can be no fair and complete investigation.”
Extract of Christopher Pagan’s letter on why he had taken it upon himself to let the world know
Once the news aired on television the police officer at the time, before knowing what we now know about the murder said that: “When one chooses this sort of lifestyle, these type of things happen”. The gay community was offended that on Puerto Rican television we were called side show freaks, that deserve whatever we get. As if a 19 year old was asking to be murdered and chopped up into pieces.
…
Suddenly Puerto Rico and its LGBT were put on the map and the world was watching and waiting. The Sunday I had posted my letters, the local PR MEDIA SPOKE ABOSLUTLEY NOTHING ABOUT THIS CRIME. On Monday it all changed, IT WAS FRONT PAGE NEWS. The LGBT around the world were uniting together to fight and denounce hate and show Puerto Rico that they cared.
Jorge’s killer was found hours later, which is very unheard of in Puerto Rico and its murders. The constant pressure and press worldwide forced the local government to act and obligated the local authorities to bring justice to this crime. Pedro Julio Serrano was also a huge part in the process. He handled the media and its good and negative feedback on the case, and went out of his way to clear and correct any negative press. And he was also the person that DENOUNCED AND DEMANDED that the homophobic officer who made the earlier statements to be removed from the case.
The LGBT community of Puerto Rico is completely touched and amazed by the support and love that it has received worldwide. Jorge managed to unite a community, and island, a nation, A PLANET. He had high hopes to become an important figure in beauty and fashion. Not one negative comment has been made by his friends and loved ones. All have said that all they can remember is laughing constantly with him and his charismatic persona. He always dreamt of being an important figure, well now JORGE IS A ICON, A MESSENGER OF CHANGE. He will change the way people see bigotry and brutal acts of hate.
I never met Jorge, but I can tell you that I feel like he’s sitting next to me every second of the day, even as I write this letter with tears in my eyes, I can feel his presence and his content feeling that justice was served for him, and many others that have suffered this fate. Jorge is the story, I am the messenger that made sure it was heard and read.
Always remember that your most powerful weapon in this world, is your VOICE. God bless the WORLD and god bless the Jorge.
- Christopher Pagan who didn’t know the victim personally but posted the news on CNN’s iReport website on Nov 15, 2009.
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Reader's Comments
pooor boy,hope he get peace in heaven.
and he deserve Respect and Justice!!!!!!!
You are in my thoughts Jorge and I sincerely hope your legacy and impact will have a long lasting meaning to all in Puerto Rico and beyond.
No one sworn to upholding and enforcing the law should be able to retain his job after making such a statement.
suspect:
"International news wires and CNN have since followed up on the case in which a 26-year-old male suspect identified by Primera Hora newspaper as Juan A. Martínez has been arrested on early Tuesday morning."
R.I.P young man.
FRIDAE COMMUNITY: Please check to see if there will be a vigil for him where you live. The main one will be in NYC Sunday, Nov. 22. The world needs to know who Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado was and how he was killed. May he rest in peace.
I have had said this countless times, minorities DO NOT need to request the approval of the masses. DEMAND it ! When the unjust world hits one of your own, UNITE and SLAM back twice as hard. There's no language like "taste your own medicine!".
There's a time to tolerate and there's a time to fight. All this talk of love, tolerance and offer your other butt cheek is BS crap.
God rest Jorge's soul and offer peace to his family and loved ones! Amen.
PS: Look at the murderer, he's wearing a rosary around his neck. How christian...zzz
While Hate Crime laws may prosecute offenders, they do nothing to reduce, and may even worsen, social homophobia. Can the dead be revived if we prosecute the offenders? No. Will less gay people have fear for being identified as gay? No. Governments around the world should take the lead in countering this social problem by removing the mentioned obstacles. It has to start from education. If children and their parents are provided CSE, it serves not to reduce this social problem, but also many other problems such as HIV, premarital pregnancies, premarital sex, and self-hatred (internalised homophobia among LGBT).
Coming back to the policeman in this case. I actually sympathise with him. As the mentioned Georgia study reveals, there is a high likelihood that this person is a gay who has been trying hard to repress his sexual orientation. If this speculation is accurate, he must have suffered a lot since his childhood or puberty. If any party has to be blamed, it is not him, but the society he grew up in that caused him so much fear to accept his own homosexual tendency. So much so that he developed his strong homophobia.
I hope that the Obama Administration will take the lead in offering CSE across US like what the Brown Cabinet had for the UK. It will have more profound effects on reducing hate crimes than hate crime laws.
But before this can be done on a global scale, gay organisations around the world's role in redressing inequalities is paramount. For example, by putting this case in the spotlight, we can raise public awareness of the problem. Before any solution can be considered, the public have to realise that there is a problem. This case does raise this awareness. We should use the internet and the mass media as powerful tools to dig out obscured news like this and bring them to global, public awareness.
I always curious after killing, the murderer take his/her time to "handle" the body, like chop into pieces or cook it...creepy!!
Do we know for a fact that this young boy was killed because he was gay, or is it simply speculation? We should never jump to conclusions.
It is interesting to note that only one person heard this comment. There is no record of others hearing this comment?? How did this one person nobody ever heard of before come to be the one to hear this comment? Why have no others come forward to back up Mr. Pagan's statement?
The the only references I can find in recognized news sources relating to the case make no mention of this police oficers comment.
Additionally, no reference in recognized media sources indicate that it is unusual for someone to be promptly arrested for a murder in Puerto Rico.
I find many legitimate references that highlight the outrage of gay activists and gay affiliated organizations and the suggestions that this is or might be a hate crime ( let me state very clearly - murder is motivated by hate, anger and jealousy, not love, kindness and other good feelings.).
Before we get all upset about alleged injustices in the penal system in Puerto Rico, let us see how the investigation, trial and sentencing play out in time.
One last remark on the ALLEGED comment by the police investigator - let us wait to see how that plays out .... it is not inconceivable that he never said those words and it is of course not inconceibable that he did. If he did, I feel sorry for him, but he is still entitled to have his own thoughts and opinions. We cannot ask the world to allow us free expression for ourselves and deny it to others, even the ACLU ( which I loathe) supports the right of "hate" speech.
We lose credibility with the larger community when we cry hatred and bigotry at every turn.
Member Sunthenmoon's statements above aid open discussion and hopefully action.. unfortunately Member Wed (right above) seems to have a different outlook and possible his will remove his thoughtless post.
Allow me to explain what really happened. Matos is the suspected murderer. Jorge is the victim, a gay who looked like a female. Matos picked up Jorge in the streets, thinking Jorge was a woman. Matos discovered later that Jorge was male. This evoked an unhappy memory. Matos had been imprisoned before. During his time in the prison, he had been sexually assaulted by males. This had been the cause of the conflict between Matos & Jorge.
If Matos were a female who had been raped by males before, he might have resorted to the same violent reaction if he became sexually assaulted by male straight rapists again. Additionally, there is no evidence to suggest that he had actively targeted at gays at large. In this case, it was Jorge who pretended to be a woman in order to seduce him in the first. When Matos picked up Jorge in the street, he thought Jorge was a female. He found out that Jorge was a male only later. Matos felt threatened by homosexual assault again.
The US Hate Crime law only applies if the offender is targeting at a group because of their sexual orientation, race, etc. Since Matos could not be proven to be predatory on the gay community and was only overreacting because he felt threatened, I don't think it's fair to use Hate Crime law on him.
Now, who should be charged under Hate Crime law? I think the police officer should be investigated for violations under this law. The reason? This law prosecutes illegal acts against someone motivated by his sexual orientation or gender identity. If it is found out that this police officer had not acted legally, that is, dealt with the investigation of this case with due diligence and as required under the police department's codes (illegal act), and this is motivated by Jorge's sexual orientation or gender identity (provision under Hate Crime law) rather than what Jorge did to him, then this police officer could be charged under this law, meaning that he may have to be charged in a Federal court instead of just receiving disciplinary actions from the local police department. As long as the Federal agencies have evidence that:
1) he had not acted legally in his conduct as a police officer, and
2) it was motivated by Jorge's gender identity or sexual orientation (which they have reason to suspect because he had commented that Jorge deserved it) rather than specific things Jorge did to him
then he could be charged under Hate Crime.
Beside Jorge's sexual orientation and gender identity, there doesn't seem to exist any other reason that would motivate this police officer to say that Jorge deserved it and, perhaps, if proven later, to not have conducted the investigation properly.
You doubt the veracity of Mr. Pagan, and whether the words were uttered, however you don't seem to have clicked on the links below the above article, from which it is clear that the police remarks were televised, and are not denied by the police, but they claim the meaning was distorted.
The penultimate link ( see the latest translation towards the bottom of that page) states:
" "his kind of people, when they get involved in this and go out on the street, know that this can happen to them," were the words that the investigating officer spoke to Univisión news.
Chief among those who expressed their discomfort at those comments was the lawyer Vance Thomas, Executive Director of the Civil Rights Commission, who urged the Police Superintendent José Figueroa Sancha, to bring administrative charges against the officer.
"In addition to removing him (Rodríguez Colón) from the case, you must file administrative charges. I know of no context in which one can justify saying that a person asked to be killed," said Thomas.
He said he will ask the attorney general, Antonio Sagardía, to reactivate a committee that was established in 2008 to prosecute hate crimes.
The Police Superintendent, for his part, waved off this complaint, saying that he didn't hear the officer's words but that "none of his agents are allowed to make homophobic statements."
Meanwhile, the Director of Police of the Guayama region, Héctor Agosto, said that the statement by Rodríguez had been distorted and that the officer had no intention at any time of disrespecting gay or lesbian groups."
There's a TV interview with the police superintendent (in Spanish) here I found via youtube:
http://www.wapa.tv/noticias/locales/fiscalia-decidira-si-fue-crimen-de-odio/20091117183534
This may be the one referred to above, maybe a Spanish speaker can tell us what it says.
I did not click any link from this websight. In fact, I did not even notice those listed at the bottom of the article. I ran a few other searches and failed to find anything relating to remarks of such a nature.
I do not have sound on my computer, so it would be pointless to attempt to listen to the remarks you have indicated.
If the remark was uttered ( as you indicate it was ) it really is secondary to the main issue. A tragic crime occurred. An arrest was made and presumably justice will be served and the perpetrator will be executed ( if Puerto Rico allows for capitol punishment - which I hope they do).
Just a few blocks away from where I live, at my local gay bar, the owner was tortured and killed a few years ago, by a person of questionable repute that he ( the owner ) engaged in a drug induced sexual encounter with, after the closing of the bar. Apparently the perpetrator felt that the bar owner took some liberties beyond what he felt was appropriate to his manhood and he killed him in a brutal and violent manner, not to the extreme as in the Puerto Rico case, but in a manner any civil person would find vile and unspeakable. The local police were of course made uncomfortable by the setting and the scenario, and similar thoughts no doubt were expressed privately, but the net result was still an arrest, prosecution and punishment of the perpetrator. No hate crime law was needed, no international investigations, no intrusive do-gooders got in the way. Just as it almost always happens, the equal enforcement of justice prevailed.
No doubt, if the bar owner had been prudent, he would not have engaged in a drug induced wild scene with some street thug type that wandered in the bar. Nobody deserves such a fate, but sometimes an individual has to accept some accountability for the outcome of his actions.
As to Mr Pagan, he is really appears to be of little or no consequence to this situation, except that he brought national and apparently international attention to something that is largely a local issue and occurs daily - a senseless murder. In fact, the niece of one of my lifelong family friends was murdered in Texas recently for nothing more than being in the wrong place when I crime was being committed and the offender killed her because she was in his way as he was making his get-away. It sounds like the normal alarmists in the gay "community" are making him into some sort of hero, when he really might have done nothing at all but share a bit of juicy gossip.
post 41 - I am not certain if Mr. Pagan is an activist or an alarmist. I have no inherent dislike of anyone. I am not quite certain what an activist is actually. Assuming it is someone that uses their available resources to advance an idea or cause they support, then I am an activist myself.
I am an activist for the objectivity of our laws. I am not an activist for controlling thought or limiting any individuals feedom, including the freedom to to believe in things in find abhorent.
Perhaps I am fortunate for experiencing little or no negative backlash to my homosexuality over the years, as I cannot truly recall experiencing any hatred as a consequence of "coming out" or being a homosexual, but that is not the issue here.
The totality of my comments have continually related to us not leaping to judgements and make assumptions that propel the actions of one person to a level of consequence when there is likely little evidence to suggest that raising the awareness of this specific situation made the outcome any different.
We can never go back in time and see if the perpetrator would have been arrested had Mr. Pagan not raised his alarm over the alleged comments of the police investigator, but the tone of this article and the "gay media" seems to credit him with forcing action, when in fact he might have done nothing of any consequence.
I do not gamle, but if I was a "betting man" I would lay my odds with the legal/judicial system pursuing criminals without the pressure of 3rd party alarmists.
If I am wrong and there is some substantive proof someone can offer to suggest the Puertorican police would not have pursued and arrested such a vile murderer, then present it to us and I will gladly retract my words relative to this specific case and offer loud words of appreciation to Mr. Pagan, until then, my comments have ended, as I think the actions of the police at this time are what need to be applauded.
Fair enough, nothing wrong with not jumping to conclusions, and we certainly can't say pending the full story coming out in Court, whether this particularly awful murder was a hate crime as defined in Puerto Rico. You're also right that people should be careful about crying wolf. And I'm not sure what constitutes an activist either.
However, you launched a totally unmerited attack on the credibility of Mr. Pagan, without looking at the reports properly. Your first, knee-jerk reaction to the story was that this guy was probably lying about the officer's statement for some ulterior motive, and you put forward your half-hearted search as evidence to support that prejudice. Now, what's that about?
Justice. Isn't that what we all crave for ALL the victims of hate and injustice, including racial, sexual, religious and political, throughout the centuries and today? Human justice is sadly too often not that at all.
OmG, "Let justice roll down like the waters..." One day it will. Perfectly. I believe.
On a different note, should the murderer of the gay Puerto Rican teen be homosexual, is this still considered hate crime homicide? Do we automatically labeled all gay-related incidences to be hate crimes until proven that the perpetrators were not gay and called it accordingly?
Personally, the brutality of this murder is shocking. I say this not because he's gay or I'm gay. I say this as a fellow human being. Rest in peace Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado.
Anyone who can trample upon the sanctity of another's demise from a heinous crime, without so much as to accord the due respect of investigative circumstantial process & probability, is simply a hardcore loser; and will always remain so even in full view of any factual evidence. This is how self hate individuals exists/persists. It darkens everything inside, outside and around themselves. As good as dead and then some. ;)
If the solution to hate, is hate for other tribes, even those who would do us no harm, then we should all be justified to end up slamming planes into tall buildings, killing everyone of every religion, sexuality or politics including our own, just to make a point.
I hope, however, if we had been there that fateful day, that we would all have had the spiritual, moral and physical courage to have stood between, say, Matthew Shepard and his murderers. That would have been justified, and truly courageous. Hate-filled words, ultimately, are not, and may end up with many more deaths, including those who are innocent, like children or people who do not hate other tribes.
The girl who was killed in the shooting in the Tel Aviv gay bar earlier this year, was actually "straight". But like "zgmm" says, she was firstly a fellow human being. Fortunately, that incident was not fuelled further by hate. Love. None of us is perfect, and we all get hurt sometimes, but sometimes we forget, me included, what that word really means. But it does not mean you can't stand up for what is true, and what is loving. And if you can say that you would have stood between Matthew and his murderers that day because of Love, i would be inspired by your courage, and very proud to have stood by your side.
R.I.P Monsieur Mercado.
Steveuk Post #44: If one's response toward such a tragic muder can only be suspicion & thinly-veiled scorn, you already know he/she/they are below the level of a decent human being. Ignore them.
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