Graham+March+1A

  Teenagers Let off in Immigrant's Murder  On July 12th, in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, two teenage boys were arrested and charged with the beating and murder of Mexican immigrant Luis Ramirez. Brandon Piekarsky and Derrick Donchak had apparently been drinking earlier, and when they came across Ramirez, they insulted him, using harsh racial slurs. They baited him into attacking them and beat him brutally. At one point, the teens knocked him to the ground and Piekarsky delivered a kick to the head which made brain tissue ooze out of his skull when doctors tried to operate. Several other Teens participated in the fight, one of whom has pleaded guilty in juvenile court and another whose case is being tried by a federal judge.

The two teens said that it was a street brawl gone wrong and that they meant no real harm to Ramirez. They went on, saying that the fight had nothing to do with racial bias and that Ramirez had been the agressor. Their Lawyer was quoted as saying,"In my mind it was the lack of evidence to tie these kids to the serious charges that they brought."

The procecution countered with an arguement that there was clear evidence that Ramirez had been specifically targeted because he was a mexican. There were witnesses who had seen the group of boys bait and attack Ramirez, continuing to beat him even after he was on the ground. Numerous advocacy groups said that this was outrageous behavior, and that Ramirez's mother and widow should get some compensation, in addition to whatever court sentence that the trial would decide.

The jury decided that most of the serious charges would be dropped, and the two were convicted of assault, which got them 6 and 7 months of jail time, respectively. Many were outraged at the incredible leniency of this sentence. Among the protestors, many were also not convinced of the jury's impartial position in this case. An all white jury practically aquitting two white teenagers responsible for a Latino man's death? A little bit on the suspicious side. It remains to be seen whether the ruling will be overturned and whether or not members of the jury may find themselves on trial for impairing a court of law.

As is obvious from the above description of the case, I believe very strongly that this was a case where justice was not served. These two boys, although minors, were both old enough to realize what they were doing was wrong. They picked on an innocent man only because of the color of his skin, and he is no longer alive today because of them. A conviction of assaut is far too small a price to pay for taking another man's life.

by Graham March

Grinberg, Emanuella. (2009, June 17). //2 teens get jail time in mexican's beating death//. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/06/17/pennsylvania.immigrant.beating.death/index.html