From the Manassas News and Messenger:
Published: August 14, 2009
The American Civil Liberties Union on Friday filed a motion to dismiss charges against four Hispanic men arrested for loitering near the Coverstone apartment complex in Manassas earlier this year.
In the papers, filed in Prince William General District Court, the ACLU challenges Prince William County’s loitering ordinance, saying the law is “unconstitutionally vague,” and allows police to target “disfavored groups.”
According to the court documents filed by the ACLU, Alberto Miguel Arias, 35, Juan Canseco-Rodriguez, 51, Jesus Velasquez Lopez, 43, and Isreal Lopez Amador, 36, were arrested for loitering on May 5.
According to the ACLU, the men were part of a larger group of men standing on the sidewalk near a bus stop outside Coverstone Apartments, where they lived, when police officers approached them on May 5.
The police officers asked each of the men for identification. The men who were unable to prove they lived in the apartment complex were charged with trespassing and the men who could prove they were apartment complex residents were charged with loitering, according to the ACLU.
Prince William County police late Friday said they had no information available about the case.
According to online court documents, Arias, Canseco-Rodriguez, Lopez, and Amador were all charged with loitering.
According to the Prince William County code, loitering is a Class1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail and/or a fine of up to $2,500.
Nancy Lyall of Mexicans Without Borders said the four men charged with loitering contacted the group shortly after their arrests.
Nancy Lyall of Mexicans Without Borders said the four men charged with loitering contacted the group shortly after their arrests.
“We don’t understand the reason for the arrests,” she said. “They were standing in a public area.”
Lyall said the group received several complaints of police arresting day laborers in the Coverstone area this spring, but hadn’t heard of any recent arrests under the county’s loitering ordinance.
“We believe these individuals were targeted because of their ethnicity,” stated ACLU of Virginia Legal Director Rebecca Glenberg in a statement.
The four men are due in Prince William General District Court on Sept. 1 for a hearing on the loitering charges.
I decided this one couldn’t be summarized. Was this predictable or what?
Does anyone else wonder who else was involved in this case? I drive in that area frequently. I always see Hispanic men. I never see cops or people being arrested.
Stay tuned. This case should bring out the hounds of Hell and some lively red circles beating the war drums.
Meanwhile, who pays for this? Just askin’. I know who I would like to send the bill to.
