Justice Department files discrimination lawsuit against Puerto Rico Police Department

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- The US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the Puerto Rico Police Department PRPD) alleging that the PRPD discriminated against Yolanda Carrasquillo on the basis of race, colour and religion in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (Title VII).

Title VII is a federal statute that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, colour, national origin, sex and religion.

The suit, filed in the US District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, alleges that the PRPD discriminated against Carrasquillo by subjecting her to daily verbal harassment about her race, colour and religion over a period of approximately three years beginning in 2007 and ending in 2010.

According to the complaint,. Carrasquillo, a sworn police officer, was subjected to a hostile work environment because of the discriminatory actions of a civilian co-worker who regularly used racial and other offensive slurs directed towards Carrasquillo, and other black or dark-skinned employees, that disparaged her race, colour and Christian faith.

The United States has alleged that the co-worker’s discriminatory conduct persisted on a daily basis and over a number of years, often in the presence of Carrasquillo’s other co-workers and numerous supervisory police officers at the PRPD.

Despite numerous timely complaints about the harassment by Carrasquillo to her supervisors and other PRPD officials, the PRPD failed to take any meaningful steps to stop the harassment or discipline the harasser.

The complaint alleges that the PRPD failed to follow its anti-harassment policy which provides for zero tolerance for harassment and specifically charges supervisors with preventing and immediately correcting acts of discrimination of which they become aware through either a report made to them or personal observation.

Through this lawsuit, the United States is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief requiring the PRPD to develop and implement policies that would prevent its employees from being subjected to harassment based upon race, colour or religion as well as monetary damages for Carrasquillo as compensation for the PRPD’s discriminatory actions.

Carrasquillo originally filed a charge of race, colour and religious discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which investigated the matter, determined that there was reasonable cause to believe that discrimination had occurred, and referred the matter to the Department of Justice.

“All workers deserve the freedom to go to work each day without fear of harassment because of their race, colour or religion. Public employers should set an example for others by upholding the law and taking prompt and effective action to stop discriminatory harassment,” said Jocelyn Samuels, principal deputy assistant attorney general for the civil rights division. “The Department of Justice will vigorously pursue such violations of Title VII.”

ATHEIST PUERTO RICO COP FILES DISCRIMINATION SUIT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Lawyers filed a lawsuit Friday against some of Puerto Rico's top police officials, accusing them of discriminating against an officer for being an atheist and not adhering to the separation of church and state.

It is one of the first cases of its kind filed in the deeply religious U.S. territory, where 85 percent of the people consider themselves Roman Catholic and a large minority is Protestant.

The lawsuit names the island's police chief and three supervisors. It was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union in Puerto Rico and the Washington-based ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief.

The case involves police officer Alvin Marrero Mendez, 38, who repeatedly refused to participate in Christian prayers held at his precinct because he is an atheist.

In one case, attorneys say his supervisors held a prayer in the parking lot of a shopping mall prior to an intervention. Marrero objected and his supervisors ordered him to abandon the formation, yelling, "He is standing there because he doesn't believe in what we believe in," the lawsuit states.

After Marrero filed a complaint, lawyers said, supervisors demoted the 14-year veteran, stripped him of his gun and made him wash patrol cars and act as a messenger.

The ACLU is seeking a court judgment stating that forced prayer in a government workplace violates the doctrine of separation of church and state as well as the officer's freedom. Puerto Rico's constitution specifically states there needs to be complete separation of church and state.

The ACLU also requested a court order to stop the alleged retaliation.

"Government employees should never be forced to pray with the boss," said Daniel Mach, director of the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief.

Michelle Franco, a spokeswoman for Puerto Rico's police chief, Hector Pesquera, did not respond to a request for comment.

One of the supervisors named in the lawsuit, Guillermo Calixto Rodriguez, was appointed police chief for the capital of San Juan in January. He could not be reached for comment.

The lawsuit highlights how church and state are often intertwined in Puerto Rico, a conservative island of 3.7 million people.

A couple years ago, officials with the Treasury Department organized a Catholic Mass in the building's lobby, complete with an altar.

Prayer circles have been held at the Supreme Court.

And in March 2012, former Police Chief Emilio Diaz Colon promoted more than 470 officers at a ceremony held at a church, saying at the time, "We are very grateful that God is with us at the Puerto Rico Police Department."

Diaz was criticized at the time for his comments and for using the church, but he said the location was provided at no cost and was large enough to accommodate everyone who attended.

"This has always been a problem in Puerto Rico," said William Ramirez, the ACLU's local director. "It's very divisive and it's unconstitutional. ... Government is sending a message, 'This is what we believe, and we believe you should be believing.'

Reference: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/atheist-puerto-rico-cop-files-discrimination-suit

Agreement with Anti-Discrimination Unit and Department of Justice

http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc/pdf/PuertoRico_DOL.pdf

Puerto Rico bans employment discrimination

Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla has signed legislation that bars workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity and that extends protection from domestic violence to same-sex couples. This puts Puerto Rico ahead of Congress and almost half the states in enacting laws to prevent employment discrimination.

The action came after strong opposition from religious groups, that succeeded in watering down the original legislation which would have covered commercial transactions, property rentals and public transportation as well as employment.

The Washington Post reported that “earlier this year, Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla signed an order extending health insurance coverage to the domestic partners of workers in his executive branch of government, regardless of gender. The island’s Justice Department also is prosecuting its first hate crime case for the killing of a hairstylist who was set on fire.”

Justice Department sues Puerto Rico police, alleging racial bias

The U.S. Justice Department said Monday it is suing Puerto Rico's police department for discrimination, alleging a female officer suffered three years of harassment for her race, color and religion.

The allegations are the latest in a series of claims against the commonwealth's troubled police force, and they follow an agreement last week between the Justice Department and Puerto Rico to reform the island's 17,000-strong force.

The suit alleges the PRPD, the nation's second-largest police department, subjected officer Yolanda Carrasquillo to verbal harassment from 2007 to 2010, violating Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

It says a civilian co-worker "regularly used racial and other offensive slurs directed towards Carrasquillo, and other black or dark-skinned employees, that disparaged her race, color and Christian faith." The verbal abuse happened daily and was often in front of police supervisors, the suit says.

Carrasquillo made numerous complaints to her supervisors, but the department never took any meaningful steps to stop the harassment or discipline the person responsible, the Justice Department said. The department failed to follow its own anti-harassment policy that requires supervisors to prevent and stop discriminatory behavior after they become aware of it, the suit says.

CNN reached the spokeswoman for the police department's superintendent, who said she would call back if he was able to make a comment. There was no reply by late Monday.

The Justice Department's lawsuit seeks monetary damages for Carrasquillo and asks the PRPD to develop and implement policies that would prevent employees from being subjected to harassment on the basis of race, color or religion.

Carrasquillo originally filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which referred the matter to the Justice Department.

"Public employers should set an example for others by upholding the law and taking prompt and effective action to stop discriminatory harassment," said Jocelyn Samuels, the principal deputy assistant attorney general for the department's Civil Rights Division.

Last week, the Justice Department and Puerto Rico signed a major civil rights agreement to fix a pattern of police misconduct by the PRPD, mostly relating to the department's interaction with the public. It is pending final approval by a federal judge.

The pact covers 11 core areas including use of force, searches and seizures, equal protection, civilian complaints, training and supervision. An earlier Justice Department investigation uncovered evidence that officers failed to adequately investigate sexual assault and domestic violence allegations.

Reference: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/22/justice/puerto-rico-police-lawsuit/index.html

Puerto Rico Approves Anti-Discrimination Bill

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Legislators in Puerto Rico on Friday approved a heavily debated bill that outlaws employment discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation.


Opponents of the bill prayed on the steps of the seaside Capitol building as lawmakers voted on a simplified version of the measure, which was widely rejected by religious organizations in the conservative U.S. territory.


The original version was broader and would have also banned such discrimination when it comes to commercial transactions, property rentals and public transportation, as well as in other circumstances. About half of U.S. states have approved similar bills.


The measure's author, Sen. Ramon Luis Nieves, told reporters he is not bothered that the original version was not approved.


"This is not insignificant," he said. "This is a great victory in the fight for human rights in Puerto Rico."


Legislators on Friday also approved a separate bill that extends a domestic violence law to gay couples.


Both bills are to go back to the Senate, which is expected to approve them. The governor has said he would sign both measures.


Supporters of the bill waved rainbow flags and loudly chanted "Equality!" as they crowded around legislators who approved the bills.


"A decade ago, (we) were criminals under a sodomy law. Today, we're second-class citizens," said Pedro Julio Serrano, spokesman for the U.S.-based National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. "When this measure becomes law, we will be closer to obtaining the first-class citizenship we deserve."


The new measures come as the U.S. territory begins to debate gay rights more seriously in the Caribbean region, where sodomy laws and harassment of gays is common.


Earlier this year, Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla signed an order extending health insurance coverage to the domestic partners of workers in his executive branch of government, regardless of gender. The island's Justice Department also is prosecuting its first hate crime case for the killing of a hairstylist who was set on fire. But the push toward more gay rights in Puerto Rico remains widely debated.


The island's House of Representatives approved the anti-discrimination bill 29-22 after a 10-hour debate that ended overnight Thursday without a consensus.


The proposal did not have full support from the governor's Popular Democratic Party, which controls the island's House and Senate. The governor had met with members of his party late Thursday and urged them to vote for the bill.


"The country has a social obligation, a historic obligation and also a Christian obligation to fight all types of discrimination," he said.


The island's Senate approved the original measure 15-11 last week, but the House of Representatives sought to changes in the bill.


Rep. Javier Aponte Dalmau was among those who opposed the measure. He said all types of discrimination are wrong, but considered the original bill's wording to be too far reaching, and there are other judicial means to address potential discrimination.


Other legislators voted against the measure saying they believe the island's Constitution already addresses discrimination.


A local Christian organization, Puerto Rico for Family, said the bill was unnecessary because the gay and lesbian community has not proved it faces greater employment discrimination than other groups.


"This law creates a base to promote homosexuality and other conducts in schools," the organization said in a statement.


Most government agencies in Puerto Rico already have their own anti-discriminatory policies, but human rights activists say they are often not enforced.

Reference: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/25/puerto-rico-anti-discrimination_n_3336302.html