", State Rep. Ben Reyes of Houston, also a Mexican-American, called the verdict "pathetic" and "the worst miscarriage of justice that I've ever seen." They're dead, Michael C. Ramsey, one of the defense lawyers, said of the Justice Department's appeal effort, which he termed frivolous. Mr. Ramsey said he considered today's sentences a victory for the additional reason that the three defendants would no longer have to face the five years probation originally imposed by the Judge. Many segments are silent and would have been voiced over by the anchorperson during a live broadcast. 'My mother was never the same after Jose was killed,' his sister Janie Torres, who was 10 at the time her brother's death, said. Buffalo Bayou near Commerce St. Tuesday May 6, 2014. Two observers watch as Margaret Torres throws a wreath into Buffalo Bayou in memory of her son, Joe Campos Torres. Divers search the Buffalo Bayou site where Joe Campos Torres' body was found floating May 8, 1977. Austin, TX 78751, Grand Jury Investigation into the Death of Jos Campos Torres (1977). The Houston Police Department first arrested Phillips's replacement, a Security Guard Services, Inc. employee named Robert Taylor. Houston Police Chief Troy Finner comforts Margarita Campos Torres, the mother of 23-year-old Jose Campos Torres killed by police in 1977, as they stand in front of a trail at 1301 Commerce with an Army photo of her son dedicated in his honor April 2 in downtown Houston. HPD is now hiring for our upcoming classes. More often than not, they were the first Spanish-speaking officers the victims had come into contact with. Each to Serve Extra Day for Roles in Suspect's Death Judge Assailed as Too Lenient. info@texasarchive.org Officers Terry Denson (left) and Stephen Orlando (right) were the only two officers convicted of negligent homicide, a misdemeanor, in the death of Torres, and each was fined $1 and given. Vanderbilt Television News Archive On June 28, a Harris County grand jury indicted two of the officers, Terry Denson and Steven Orlando, for murder and a third, J. J. Janisch, for misdemeanor assault. The judge received dismissed the case without explanation. According to the podcast, between 1950, when the police department hired its first Hispanic officer, and 1970, HPD had hired fewer than 20 Hispanic officers. "People rose-up and started throwing rocks and bottles at the police, overturning police cars and shouting 'Justice for Joe Torres' and 'Viva Joe Torres,'" Barthe said. The arresting officers took him to a place dubbed 'the hole,' an area behind a warehouse along the Buffalo Bayou, and beat him before taking Torres to the city jail. Decades before the recent police violence in Memphis, a brutally beaten Latino man was tossed by officers into a Houston bayou and drowned. Torres' nephew, Richard Molina, said the family is in communication with the city to find a proper way to memorialize his uncle. She blends vividly reported details of decades-old events with personal anecdotes of similar struggles. The Killing of Jos Campos Torres. 512-485-3073 The judge gave the three suspended sentences of 10 years, plus five years probation, on the felony charge that resulted from Mr. Torres's death. Robert Bennett, attorney for Mr. Denson, who had been specifically charged with pushing Mr. Torres into the water, said that he would argue against a prison sentence for his client. Chip Gaines Bought Larry McMurtrys Historic Texas Bookstore. Abe Weiner, owner of the Leonard's Department Store in the same shopping center which suffered looting and smoke damage, said the store burned over an hour before firemen responded to the call for help. If I didnt tell you that this story took place forty years ago, you might think it had just happened, Alonzo told me. It's been 40 years since 23-year-old Vietnam War veteran Joe Campos Torres' body was found washed up on the banks of the Buffalo Bayou. Instead of being taken to jail, police took Campos Torres to "The Hole," an isolated area behind a warehouse along Buffalo Bayou where Houston Police Department officers could write reports, question suspects and sleep. info@texasarchive.org He said looters from the riot at Moody Park knocked out windows and forced the clerk to flee through the back of the store as the crowd looted. City Employees Are Heading for the Exits. The other count, a misdemeanor violation of Mr. Torres's rights by intimidation, carries a maximum punishment of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Its possible.. Once there, officials refused to book him because of the extent of his injuries, and ordered that he be admitted to a hospital. Holland, 80, previously was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. They were ordered to take him to Ben Taub General Hospital, but instead of doing so, the officers brought him back to the banks of Buffalo Bayou and pushed him into the water. A Houston Chronicle reporter and photographer joined the Northeastern Trail Riders Association to document the highlights and challenges of life on the trail during the group's 108-mile journey to the 2023 Houston Letter from the editor: Introducing our exclusive new newsletter, Black trail riders head to Houston rodeo parade after grueling, joyful 6-day journey. Aided by the research of producer and Austin-based journalist Eva Ruth Moravec, Alonzo guides listeners through interviews with Chicano activists, former police officers, scholars, and Torress family members. The jury heard four weeks of testimony alleging that six police officers had taken Joe Campos Torres, 23, a laborer, from a cheap cantina, where he was arrested for public drunkeness, to a secluded spot near a bayou, where five of them beat him severely while his arms were handcuffed behind his back. After their conviction in March of last year, Judge Sterling sentenced the three former officers, all of whom were dismissed by the Houston Police Department within hours of the discovery of Mr. Torres's body, to a year in prison on the misdemeanor charge. The Department of Justice is supposed to fill that leadership role at a national level. For Alonzo, the Chicano Squad is a reminder that reform is possible, even if its difficult to sustain. Joining HPD was regarded almost as a betrayal. Join Facebook to connect with Terry Denson and others you may know. Police responded to a call at the park on the evening of May 7, 1978, and as the crowd began chanting Justice for Jose Torres, a riot broke out. ', Torres' sister Janie said she was 10 at the time of her brother's death and that her family was never the same. Houston police officers administer first aid to Officer Tommy A. Britt, injured by a car that broke through a police line at Irvington and Fulton during a riot that began in nearby Moody Park. Following a month-long trial, an all-white jury convicted Denson and Orlando on a reduced charge of negligent homicidea misdemeanoron October 6. This unedited footage from Houston's KPRC-TV captures protesters outside the Houston Police Department headquarters on May 16, 1977. Federal prosecutors termed the verdict a compromise, noting that the defendants were not found guilty of additional charges that they had conspired to obstruct justice by withholding information about the incident from Federal investigators. Burning car flipped during a riot that began in nearby Moody Park. The sentences that Judge Sterling imposed were each one year and one day, but they were set to run concurrently with separate oneyear sentences he imposed on the three men last year for a misdemeanor count of violating the victim's civil rights. Vilma Martinez, president of the MexicanAmerican Legal Defense and Educational Fund, also called for the judge's impeachment. REPORTER: Walter Cronkite, (Houston, Texas) Background of case involving alleged beating of Joe Campos Torres, which resulted in his drowning, by officers Terry Wayne Denson, Stephen Orlando and Joseph Janish given. Terry Denson, 27; Stephen Orlando, 22, and Joseph J. Janish, 22 -- said they do not plan to appeal the . Rioters looted and set fire to a shopping center, and fifteen people were injured including five police officers and two news personnel. Any editing, reproduction, publication, rebroadcast, public showing or public display may be prohibited by copyright laws. Two Houston police officers stand guard over a wrecked convenience store at 3814 Fulton. The Government appealed, arguing that probation was not permissible in cases where the possible penalty was life in prison, as it is in Federal civil rights cases in which the victim has died. Following another beating, Campos Torres was pushed off the raised platform and fell 20 feet into the Bayou, where his body was found three days later. On May 5, 1977, Campos Torres, was arrested at a bar for disorderly conduct. More than 40 people were arrested during the riots, which became nationwide news and led to the creation of HPD's internal affairs department. A number of people have since been tried. 6:00AM, Kinetic Celebrates Womens History Month with a World Premiere, What Your Favorite Mainline Final Fantasy Game Says About You. Divers search the murky water of Buffalo Bayou in an unsuccessful attempt to find a wallet belonging to a southeast Houston man allegedly drowned by a policeman. Torres' mother was quoted as saying, "If five Mexican killed a cop, it wouldn't be like this. All of the jurors were white, none was Mexican-American and five either worked for law enforcement agencies or had relatives who did. Complaints against members of the Houston Police Department may be initiated in person to a supervisor at any police substation throughout the City of Houston, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The former officers have admitted that they beat their handcuffed prisoner for insolence before booking him. According to sworn testimony, the officers then spreadeagled the prisoner against a patrol car, and Mr. Denson, after some discussion of what to do with the prisoner, said, Let's see if this wetback can swim. The prosecutors contended that Mr. Denson then pushed Mr. Torres into the bayou. This is a carousel. Calbillo is one of several people working to get a historical marker for Torres. Carrying picket signs reading "Protection not police brutality" and "Stop the war against Chicano people," the demonstrators were protesting the police-involved death of Jos Campos Torres. On May 8, Mr. Torres's body was found floating in the bayou. Austin, TX 78751. His body was found on May 8Mother's Day. His drowned body was found three days later on May 8, 1977 - exactly 40 years ago today. Who Said It: Legendary Houston Comedian Bill Hicks or New El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks? Torres's body was found two days later. 'Let's get this clear because there's been some chatter in the neighborhoods [about] how Chief Finner feels about this,' he said of Torres' death, 'and that is straight-up murder of somebody. He said it demonstrated once again that there is "a dual standard of justice" in Texas, adding, "Our only redress in the federal courts.". 1 of 2. Of the six, initially only officers Terry Denson and Steven Orlando were charged with murder. After the Huntsville verdict was reached last fall, pressure from Texas political leaders, including Gov. And to this day, Morales remains skeptical that the Chicano Squad was the answer. The appeals court did not specify the severity of the sentences to be imposed, however, and John Wilson, a Justice Department spokesman in Washington, said that no further appeals would be forthcoming because the judge had acted within the limits of the order.. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. Rishi Sunak is urgently reviewing his private exchanges with Matt Hancock after bombshell leak of ex-Health 'Drinks cold in fridge at DH!' All the while, she draws parallels to present-day discrimination against Latinos and the ongoing demonstrations against police brutality and racial injustice. Officer Terry Denson came up with the idea: "Let's see if the wetback can swim," he said. Houstonians should take pride in knowing that a once-troubled department is now a model for the nation. In 2010, because HPDs increasingly diverse workforce now includes a higher number of Spanish-speaking officers, the group was disbanded. We want to let the people know what kind of person he was and what he meant to my family,' Molina said. That sort of exchange previously would have been unimaginable. And though her mother instilled in her a love for the U.S., Alonzo was also aware that her identity as a Mexican American sometimes made her a target. All six officers were found guilty of violating Torres' civil rights, and given a ten-year suspended sentence. Protesters met at Commerce and San Jacinto near the site where the body of Joe Campos Torres was found May 8. Instead of being transferred to Ben Taub Hospital for treatment, Torres was taken to a site along Buffalo Bayou near Commerce, where he either jumped or was pushed into the bayou. 1977, Houston Police officer Terry Denson yelled, "Let's see if this wetback can swim!" Denson, along with five other white policemen (Louis Kinney, Glen Brinkmeyer, Joseph Janish, Stephen Orlando, and Carless Elliot) had arrested Torres after responding to a complaint of a drunken Any time in the penitentiary would be unacceptable, Mr. Bennett said, adding that Mr. Denson was an outstanding public servant to this community.. Torres, an American citizen and a former serviceman, was wearing combat boots at the time of the fatal plunge. 3908 Avenue B, Suite 105 Mr. Orlando and Mr, Denson were convicted last October of negligent homicide, a misdemeanor, after a jury acquitted the two former police officers of the murder charge. About 150 protesters met at Commerce and San Jacinto on May 21, 1977 near the site where the body of Joe Campos Torres was found just weeks before. The three foriner officers, Terry W. Denson, 27 years old, Stephen Orlando, 22, and Joseph J. Janish, 24, were convicted after a twoweek trial on two counts of violating the civil rights of the prisoner, Joe Campos Torres, a 23-yearold laborer whose body was found floating in Bffalo Bayou two days after the beating. Following a month-long trial, an all-white jury convicted Denson and Orlando on a reduced charge of negligent homicidea misdemeanoron October 6. On January 15, according to a $100,000 damage suit filed by Robert and Alice Gleason, N. W. Holloway and his partner J. T. Olin were among several other cops who stormed into their Pasadena trailer. Films shown; previous state trial of 2 officers and demands of local Mex.-Americans for Justice Department probe noted. A year later and still feeling as though justice had not been served, members of Houstons Hispanic community rose up in a post Cinco de Mayo riot at the citys Moody Park. The group cleared forty homicides by the end of 1979 and later earned the recognition of the National Latino Peace Officers, in 1997, when they solved 91 percent of the cases theyd been assigned. But Glenn L. Brinkmeyer, 25, one of those given immunity and an officer in whose wedding Denson had served as a groomsman, testified that Denson had pushed Torres. In 2004, Poe was elected to the United States House of Representatives, serving for 14 years. Family members and friends of his are working to win approval of historical markers at Moody Park to commemorate Torres' death and the community's reaction. All six officers were found guilty of violating Torres' civil rights, and given a ten-year suspended sentence. Bond resigned months later after only serving a year. Houston firemen put out fire of burning car flipped during a riot that began in nearby Moody Park. Officer Terry W. Denson, 27, is charged with murder in Torres' death. Mr. Elliott later became a prosecution witness at both trials. Two of the officers who had beaten Torres, Terry W. Denson and Stephen Orlando, were charged with murder. Houston's independent source of On the night of May 5, 1977, Houston police officers arrested Torres at an East End bar for disorderly conduct. Unfortunately, Attorney General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III has made it clear he has no interest in putting federal pressure on local police departments that need reform. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Terry W. Denson. 110 Twenty-first Avenue South, Suite 704 Nashville, TN 37203, USA. A desk sergeant ordered the six officers to take Torres to Ben Taub General Hospital for medical treatment. Brinkmeyer said Denson previously had boasted throwing a wino down a ravine and had beaten other hand-cuffed prisoners. Three buildings in the shopping center were gutted by the fire. On June 28, a Harris County grand jury indicted two of the officers, Terry Denson and Steven Orlando, for murder and a third, J. J. Janisch, for misdemeanor assault. "There has never been anything to mark (Torres' death) in a positive way," Torres' nephew Richard Molina, told the Houston Chronicle in 2014. The violence May 7 left five police officers and two newsmen injured, and several stores in the area burned or looted. But as Alonzo points out: the squads role wasnt to patrol these neighborhoods, it was to solve the crimes that were plaguing them. "We never got justice," his sister Sandra Torres told the Houston Chronicle in 2011. Sam Buyajian 33, surveys the wreckage of his drive-in grocery at 3814 Fulton. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. The girl's parents told the police they went to sleep at about 11 p.m. Saturday, and when . At the time, the department was enmeshed in a series of police brutality scandals covered by Texas Monthly in an article titled, " New Gang In Town: What Happens When Cops Run Wild?". Sunday's formal apology comes after Finner and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner met privately with Torres' family over Memorial Day weekend, but wanted to make a public showingABC 13 reported. Taking Vitamin D each day could cut your chances of getting dementia, study claims. And those who chronicled the attack said the executioner was. Two of their fellow officers were given immunity from prosecution in return for their testimony in state court against the pair; one other officer faces related misdemeanor charges, and one, a rookie who reported the incident to superiors, remains on the 2,900-member Houston police force. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. Instead, they brought him back to the Hole. On the night of May 5, 1977, Houston police officers arrested Jos Campos Torres, a 23-year-old Mexican American and Vietnam War veteran, at an East End bar for disorderly conduct. 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The squads success came from how connected they were to these neighborhoods. Note to sponsor members: The Vanderbilt Television News Archive video player requires a modern operating system and browser to work properly. A local boat operator called the police, identifying Torres by the military dog tags still hanging around his neck. In Chicano Squad, an eleven-episode podcast released in January by Vox Media, host and actress Cristela Alonzo follows Houstons attempts to grapple with the aftermath of Torress death, which included the creation of the first all-Latino homicide squad in the country. In just a few short years, relationships between HPD and Houston's Hispanic community had improved to such a degree that Caldwell even commended a local police critic during a LULAC convention, who in turn praised the chief for his efforts. ,The allwhite jury of seven men and five women was in its second day of deliberations after a trial conducted by Judge Ross N. Sterling, and had deliberated for a total of seven hours before reaching the verdict. [Victim's mother Margaret TORRES - feels happy because she wanted justice and doesn't want this to happen again.] Given the departments broken relationship with the Latino community, making headway on the cases would be extremely difficult, especially because of the officer recruitment problem. You were a victim [of a crime], so Im going to treat you as a victim. Looters struck the store during a riot that began at Moody Park. October 18, 2016 ", 40 years ago police killed Joe Campos Torres sparking massive Moody Park Riots. Dozens were arrested and 15 were injured as protesters clashed with police in one of the citys most notorious riots. The US Department of Justice subsequently conducted its own investigation. But the Chicano Squad moved mountains with the little resources they had. When police attempted to make an arrest at a Cinco de Mayo celebration in Moody Park, attendees began throwing rocks and overturning police cars. Forrest Wilder writes about politics and the outdoors. Killings, planted evidence and a federal discrimination lawsuit all provided the fuel that Torres' death set ablaze at an event known as the Moody Park Riot. Its not uncommon for the stories of Latinos to be minimized or excluded entirely from Texas history books. With limited resources and no prior detective training, they faced scrutiny from all sides. Janie Torres is the sister of Jose "Joe" Campos Torres, who on May 5, 1977 was beaten and thrown into Buffalo Bayou by Houston police officers. The department wanted to rebuild its reputation fast. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. With those words, Officer Terry Denson tossed Joe Campos Torres into Buffalo Bayou. The killing of Torres - a Hispanic veteran arrested at an East End bar - was the spark that set off a series of protests, firings and reforms that eventually transformed the Houston Police Department into the modern crime-fighting institution that we know today. Latinos around town began pinning a single dollar bill to their shirts, meant to symbolize what their lives were worth in the eyes of the criminal justice system. Past charges of brutality against Houston Police Department noted. On June 28, a Harris County grand jury indicted two of the officers, Terry Denson and Steven Orlando, for murder and a third, J. J. Janisch, for misdemeanor assault. Powerful Commons committee could look at case for banning stoves in towns and Love Island hit by hundreds of Ofcom complaints from furious viewers over 'toxic femininity' row and Movie Carrie Johnson joins campaign for Joanna Simpson's killer BA pilot husband who bludgeoned her to death with 'I don't know if I can trust them': Mel B reveals she 'wouldn't call the police' over domestic violence - Houston police chief Troy Finner formally apologizes to family of Joe Campos Torres over 1977 death - ABC13 Houston, Do not sell or share my personal information. 1977 - Joe Campos Torres -- his death triggered an outcry from the Mexican-American community about police brutality in Houston. The officers then took Torres to the city jail, who refused to process him due to his injuries. Attorneys for the three defendants said they would probably appeal the verdict. This was a test, and they had only a few months to prove themselves. Poe served as a chief felony prosecutor for eight years before being appointed a state district judge in 1981. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. When the case was brought to federal court in February 1978, Denson, Orlando, and officer Joseph Janish were convicted of federal rights violations and were sentenced to one year in prison. Facebook gives people the power to. Following another beating, officers pushed Torres off a raised platform into Buffalo Bayou. The case, in which the officers could have received sentences of life in prison, has been the focus of many charges of police brutality against Hispanic citizens. Houston police officers give first aid to officer Tommy A. Britt who was injured by a car that broke through a police line at Irvington and Fulton during a riot that began in nearby Moody Park. See the article in its original context from. A lot has changed since 1979 at HPD, but community policing is really important, Moravec says. His body was found on May 8Mother's Day. The apology to Torres' family was the first by any city official, and Finner promised to work with the family to build a monument in Torres' name. Officials at the jail refused to book Torres due to his injuries, and told the officers to bring him to a hospital. Testimony at the Federal trial alleged that Mr. Torres was beaten severely after his arrest and forced to jump into the bayou by Mr. Denson, who told the man he wanted to see if a wetback can swim. Mr. Torres was a native Houstonian and a Vietnam veteran. Divers were hoping to find a wallet belonging to Torres. Hernandez, Raymond Gonzalez, and Jose Selvera Jr. On top of their translating work in the field, the squad was also tasked with investigating 52 cases that experienced detectives on the force hadnt been able to crack. State District Judge James Warref of Walker County sentenced them to one year probation and a $1 fine. the Texanist, is a staff writer. 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