On an overcast evening in early May 1977, 23-year-old Vietnam War veteran Jose Campos Torres was in handcuffs for drunk and disorderly conduct at a cantina in Houstons East End. 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. As news of the atrocity spread, Torress name became a rallying cry that united the citys Latino community in its search for justice. 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. Terry Denson and Steven Orlando, for murder. Torres' death and the light punishment the officers involved received would spark the infamous Moody Park riot one year later. Dan Solomon writes about politics, music, food, sports, criminal justice, health care, film, and business. This edited footage from Houston's KPRC-TV follows the grand jury investigation into the death of Jos Campos Torres, a 23-year-old Mexican American and Vietnam War veteran. 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. Two days after Torres was arrested, his mangled body was found floating in Buffalo Bayou. The Houston Police Department first arrested Phillips's replacement, a Security Guard Services, Inc. employee named Robert Taylor. '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. The widely publicized case was moved on a change of venue to Huntsville, a town of 20,000, about 70 miles north of Houston. Leave them blank to get signed up. Following a month-long trial, an all-white jury convicted Denson and Orlando on a reduced charge of negligent homicidea misdemeanoron October 6. A Right-wing Cabal Took Over Odessas Municipal Government. 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. But the Chicano Squad moved mountains with the little resources they had. "No parade, no day of remembrance. Watch: Astros SP Luis Garcia debuts new windup after rule changes, Oops! Houston police officers during riot at Moody Park. 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. Material supplied by VTNA may be used for educational analysis or research only. 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. Facebook gives people the power to. The US Department of Justice subsequently conducted its own investigation. Two of the officers who had beaten Torres, Terry W. Denson and Stephen. His death and the light punishment the officers received would spark the infamous Moody Park Riot one year later. The state granted immunity for two others, Glenn Brinkmeyer and Lewis Kinney, in exchange for their testimony. The summer of 1979, detective sergeant Jim Montero floated an idea past HPD chief Harry Caldwell: if he got permission to recruit a small group of Spanish-speaking patrol officers, he could train them to serve as translators in the field, helping the department to close the growing number of unsolved crimes in Houstons barrios. 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. 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. Houston Police Chief Troy Finner apologized to the family of Joe Campos Torres for his death in 1977 in Houston police custody, calling it 'straight-up murder', Torres, a US Army Vietnam veteran, was 23 when he was arrested on May 5, 1977 for disorderly conduct at a bar, and beaten. The officers were eventually sentenced to nine months in prison, but tensions simmered for a year until they boiled over on the anniversary of Campos Torres' death. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. That trial took place in Huntsville, Tex., 70 miles north of Houston, because the defendants had said they could not get a fair trial in Houston. With those words, Officer Terry Denson tossed Joe Campos Torres into Buffalo Bayou. A new podcast explores the history of the Chicano Squad as part of a Houston police department effort to repair its broken relationship with the Latino community. If you fill out the first name, last name, or agree to terms fields, you will NOT be added to the newsletter list. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. For Alonzo, the Chicano Squad is a reminder that reform is possible, even if its difficult to sustain. Campos Torres was beaten by six officers for hours before they took him to the city jail. Ruben Bonilla, national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, termed the sentences a shocking, obnoxious misuse of Federal power and urged that Judge Sterling be impeached. In the wake of Torress death, frustrated residents of Houstons barrios staged rallies and protests around the city. A group of Houston police cadets gathered Friday morning to hear family members of Joe Campos Torres speak of their loved one's death by officers in 1977. . Who Said It: Legendary Houston Comedian Bill Hicks or New El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks? See the article in its original context from. All of the jurors were white, none was Mexican-American and five either worked for law enforcement agencies or had relatives who did. Slowly, the Chicano Squad earned back the trust that HPD had lost. Though he served in that role for less than three years, Caldwell instituted key reforms that still exist today, such as HPD's first internal affairs department, HPD's first formal manual and the first liaisons to minority communities. Films shown; previous state trial of 2 officers and demands of local Mex.-Americans for Justice Department probe noted. Attorneys for the three defendants pointed out that the new sentences, because they exceed one year, would render the former officers eligible for parole, which would not be the case had their sentences remained at precisely one year. ", 40 years ago police killed Joe Campos Torres sparking massive Moody Park Riots. Surviving members of Torres' family also spoke on Sunday. Following another beating, officers pushed Torres off a raised platform into Buffalo Bayou. Forty years ago Torres was killed by police in an incident that sparked massive riots across Houston. Carless Elliott, the only rookie cop at the scene that night, later recalled in court the words of one of his fellow officers, the last words Torres must have heard before his body plunged into those dark waters: Lets see if this wetback can swim.. Officers Terry Denson and Stephen Orlando were convicted of negligent homicide, a misdemeanor, and were fined $1 and sentenced to probation. Houston firemen put out fire of burning car flipped during a riot that began in nearby Moody Park. The protests that . Rioters looted and set fire to a shopping center, and fifteen people were injured including five police officers and two news personnel. 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. 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. 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. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. 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. 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. 'Our ultimate goal is humanizing our uncle at this point. His body was found days later. Mimi Swartz is a staff writer based in Houston. Torres subsequently drowned. 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. We can only hope that the next congressional delegation brings along Sessions so that he, too, can learn the story of Joe Campos Torres and Chief Caldwell. 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 probation. By Gloria Rubac posted on April 12, 2022. On the one-year anniversary of Torres' death, the simmering social unrest erupted into riots. Outraged Mexican-American spokesman immediately called on the U.S. Justice Department to prosecute the case in federal court as a civil rights violation, for which the officers could receive up to life in prison. They couldnt fail. He said it demonstrated once again that there is "a dual standard of justice" in Texas, adding, "Our only redress in the federal courts.". Torres, a 23-year-old Mexican American and Vietnam War veteran, drowned . 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