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December 16, 2009

Police Officers Accused of Cover-Up in Beating Death of Mexican Immigrant
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In Pennsylvania, three police officers and two teenagers have been
indicted on federal charges related to the fatal beating of Luis
Ramirez, a Mexican immigrant in the town of Shenandoah. Earlier this
year, an all-white jury exonerated the two teenagers of the most serious
charges for their alleged roles in Ramirez’s death. The two were part of
a group that witnesses say brutally beat Ramirez while yelling racial
slurs. On Tuesday, the Justice Department indicted the two teens on
federal hate crimes charges. Prosecutors also indicted Shenandoah’s
police chief and two officers for obstruction of justice in their
investigation into the killing. The three police officers are accused of
several acts, including writing false reports after hearing information
implicating the teenage attackers. One of the accused officers was
dating the mother of one of the teen suspects, while another officer’s
son was a high school football teammate of all those involved.



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