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End Gascon’s Double Standard! Try Amilcar’s Killers!

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Thursday, January 5, 2017
12Noon – 1:00pm

 Hall of Justice (Steps)
850 Bryant St.
San Francisco

14141893_10207123328142041_4570245433660378963_nRSVP on FACEBOOK

District Attorney George Gascon says he’s about to decide whether to file charges against the officers who killed Amilcar Perez Lopez in February 2015 by six bullets to his back.

This Thursday, the Justice for Amilcar Coalition will once again demand the DA charge the officers with murder. And we will join Public Defender Jeff Adachi in calling out the DA’s double standard of consistently exonerating officers who kill civilians while relentlessly prosecuting civilians who allegedly harm an officer.

Whenever a civilian allegedly harms an officer, DA Gascón files every charge in the book, often with little evidence. But when a police officer harms or kills a young black or brown person like Amilcar, the DA not only refuses to bring the officer to trial but even tries to paint the victim as the criminal.

Despite many officer-involved shootings since he took office, many of them fatal, DA Gascon has charged not a single officer. By contrast, young Mission District Latinos committing relatively minor crimes are often prosecuted and punished severely. If the law is applied so harshly in one instance, why not the other?

We’re calling out the DA’s double standard. We want justice for Amilcar, Luis Gongora Pat, Mario Woods, Jessica Williams, and all the other victims of police violence.

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Check out this recent article in 48hills.org. Although the DA can’t seem to charge the officers who killed Amilcar, he relentlessly pursues a young black man who defended himself from wrongful arrest by BART police–even after a jury had found the young man innocent.

DA Gascón tries to shirk – Wednesday’s vigil

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The DA is Balking

This Wednesday’s Vigil for Amilcar, 6pm, Mission Police Station

Mission Station is where the officers who killed Amilcar are stationed. We continue to shine a spotlight on them. We haven’t forgotten what they did!

Please join us for this week’s vigil.

When: Wednesday, August 3, 6-7pm
Where: Mission Police Station, 17th and Valencia Streets

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District Attorney Gascón tries unsuccessfully to tell us why he doesn’t want to charge the officers who killed Amilcar

On July 25, several of us asked San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón why, after a year-and-a-half of investigation, he has not filed murder charges against the officers who killed Amilcar.

Gascón said he expects to complete his investigation in 6-9 weeks from last Monday.

He claimed that, even with solid eyewitness testimony and two separate autopsies, he still lacks enough evidence to prosecute them. He also blamed the current rigged system that protects officers who kill from prosecution.

We don’t buy it

As Public Defender Jeff Adache notes, despite whatever obstacles the rigged judicial system puts in his way, the DA already has all the evidence he needs to bring this case to trial.

But it takes courage. True, the DA will face much opposition from the California Law Enforcement community if he files the charges. But he can’t let fear keep him from doing his job.

District Attorney Gascón:

  • Don’t be a coward
  • Do the right thing
  • Charge the officers who killed Amilcar with murder

We demand our day in court.

What YOU can do:
Call the DA: (415) 553-1751 

Tell Gascón to do the right thing.
Say what’s in your heart. If it helps, use this script:

Hello, my name is __________________. I am a registered San Francisco voter. I want justice for Amilcar Perez Lopez, and I stand with my community in demanding DA Gascón charge the officers who killed Amilcar with murder. The DA must do the right thing. We are waiting and watching!

Save the date

Friday, August 26, 6pm, at the site where Amilcar was killed (Folsom between 24th and 25th).

We’ve invited the DA – we want answers. Stay tuned for more details.

 

This Wednesday’s Vigil

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This Wednesday’s Vigil for Amilcar, 6pm, Mission Police Station

Mission Station is where the officers who killed Amilcar are stationed. We continue to shine a spotlight on them We want them to know we haven’t forgotten what they did!

This Monday, several of us met with DA Gascon to review his investigation into Amilcar’s killing. At this week’s vigil, we’ll share what we learned and discuss some possible next steps. We’d like your feedback!

Please join us for this week’s vigil.

When: Wednesday, July 20, 6-7pm
Where: Mission Police Station, 17th and Valencia Streets

One-year Anniversary of Amilcar’s Killing by SFPD

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On February 26, 2015, Amilcar was shot six times to the back by SFPD.

As investigations continue, and demands for intervention by the Federal Justice Department escalate, we remember this young immigrant and his family in Guatemala — in poetry, prayer, dance, a candle-lit vigil and march, and a clear demand for justice and an end to police violence.

Join us Friday, February 26, 2016 at 5pm at Folsom St. between 25th and 24th St.

Among those joining us: the Danzantes Xitlali and other Bay Area faith leaders, Supervisors David Campos and Malia Cohen, Mission youth leaders, Labor leaders, leaders from the Mario Woods and Alex Nieto Coalitions, and many others.

We’ll begin with a vigil at the site of Amilcar’s shooting (Folsom between 24th and 25th), and then march to Mission Police Station. Afterwards, a free community dinner at St. John’s at 15th and Julian (between Valencia and Mission).

RSVP on Facebook HERE.

#Justice4Amilcar #6shots2theback

Open House for Unit in Amilcar’s Building Shut Down

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Earlier this year on February 26th our neighbor Amilcar Perez-Lopez was shot from behind and killed by plainclothes SFPD officers mere feet from his home in the Mission. His housemates were forced out of their home weeks after the shooting, part of the epidemic of displacement from gentrification & house flipping. One of them had lived in his home for over a decade. Neighbors and friends of Amilcar gathered in that home to eat together and support one another. Amilcar’s family is in Guatemala but other parents who lost their children to police violence showed up for him too, including La Mesha Irizarry and Refugio and Elvira Nieto.

On July 24th, members of Justice 4 Amilcar noticed a unit in their old building had been advertised on craigslist – and the rent skyrocketed to over $4,000 for a two bedroom unit.

All over the Mission landlords have displaced locals to make room for gentrification. We want to let landlords know they can’t evict people and flip the apartment unscathed. We want to let the prospective renters that the old tenant was killed in front of that home by the institution meant to protect and serve him. We want them to know the community will not forget Amilcar.

The community gathered to express their outrage.

Coverage of the action from Mission Local here.
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Carrie Schiff speaking out – photo by Peter Menchini

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Oscar Salinas from Justice y Amor for Alex Nieto speaking out in solidarity – photo by Peter Menchini

The original post from Craigslist is below:

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Sign Our Petition!

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PETITION TO CRIMINALLY CHARGE THE POLICE OFFICERS WHO KILLED AMILCAR PEREZ LOPEZ, AND WHO SUBSEQUENTLY COVERED IT UP

Petición para traer cargos penales en contra de los oficiales de la policía que participaron y encubrieron en el asesinato de Amilcar Perez Lopez

Please sign and share our Change.org petition HERE.

English (ver la versión española de abajo). The San Francisco District Attorney, the California Attorney General, and the US Attorney’s office are all entities that have the power to file criminal charges.  We call on each entity to file criminal charges against the officers that shot and killed Amilcar Perez-Lopez in the Mission District on February 26, 2015, and to file criminal charges against Chief Greg Suhr for covering up the facts of the killing of Amilcar.
The official SFPD version of Amilcar’s death was originally that the officers “feared for their lives” because Amilcar “lunged at them”. However, an independent autopsy revealed that the six bullet wounds were all to the back of Amilcar’s body. The City Medical Examiner’s report was released just recently, and is consistent with this autopsy finding. Chief Suhr now admits that he was wrong but continues the cover-up. His new story is that Amilcar lunged at a bystander.
Criminal charges should be filed immediately, based on seeing six shots to the back of Amilcar’s body, the blood on Folsom Street and not on the sidewalk, the lack of any evidence that Amilcar confronted the plainclothes officers or anyone else in the final seconds prior to his shooting, and Chief Suhr’s inability to tell the truth.

Español El Fiscal del Distrito de San Francisco, el Fiscal General de California y el Fiscal Nacional son organos judiciales que tienen la capacidad de traer cargos penales. Estamos haciendo un llamado a estas agencias para que hagan representaciones públicas de cargos penales en contra de los policías que dispararon y asesinaron a Amilcar Perez-Lopez en el Distrito de la Mision el 26 de febrero de 2015, y de registrar cargos criminales en contra de Comandante Greg Suhr por encubrir la realidad del asesinato de Amilcar.
La versión oficial de la muerte de Amilcar orginalmente fué que los oficiales de la policía “temían por sus vidas” porque Amillara “se lanzo a ellos”. Sin embargo, una autopsia independiente revelo que seis de los balazos penetraron la espalda de Amilcar. El estudio hecho por la oficina de el Médico Forense fue publicado recientemente y confirma lo que la autopsia relato. El Comandante Suhr ahora admite que él estaba erróneo pero continúa encubriendo a los protagonistas del caso. Su nuevo relato es que Almicar se le fué encima a otro peatón.
Cargos criminales deben de ser introducidos inmediatamente, basado en los seis balazos en la espalda de Amilcar, su cuerpo en la calle Folsom y no en la acera como ellos dicen, la falta de evidencia que Amilcar confrontó a los policías o ninguna otra persona en los momentos antes que fue herido por balas y finalmente la incapacidad del Comandante Suhr de decir la verdad.