Candlelight Vigil to Remember Elmer Bustos
SANTA ANA- Tuesday, Jan. 27 marks the one-year anniversary of 17-year-old Elmer Bustos' death. A dubious police shooting claimed Elmer's life
and wounded 15-year-old Carlos Castaneda in the leg.
Witnesses say that police immediately called an ambulance to rush Carlos to the hospital, while they waited for Elmer to lose massive amounts of blood, kicking him in the side as he laid on the grass.
Despite the official SAPD claim that Elmer "fired one round from a handgun," no non-police witnesses confirm this assertion.
Immediately after the incident, Elmer's family and Santa Ana residents rallied at Lime and Van Ness - the scene of the shooting - and held protests against his untimely death.
Residents and family members converged on City Hall at the next council meeting, where SAPD officers in riot gear prevented them from entering. Sana Ana resident Matt Martinez was detained and held at the City Jail all night. The official reason given for his detention was that he was riding an un-licensed bicycle.
Despite this blatant harassment, the people came back to City Hall on March 3, 2003. SAPD Chief Waters insisted that no police were wearing riot gear and suggested that activists review the video-taped meeting. (However, the riot police were posted at the entrance of the building, directly obstructing the participation of residents protesting the shooting in the video-taped proceedings.)
We are remembering the one-year anniversary of this ongoing controversy and tragedy with a gathering of family, friends and community featuring a candle-light vigil, music and a demonstration. Come find out what the police are trying to hide!
WHEN: Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2004, 6pm
WHERE: On the corner of Lime and Van Ness, Santa Ana, CA
WHO: Family and friends of Elmer Bustos and everyone else concerned about police brutality and racial profiling
For more information, e-mail
ocblack66@yahoo.com Please see:
"Suspect is shot, killed." Gabriel, Michelle and Perkes, Courtney. Orange County Register. Jan. 28, 2003.
"Santa Ana residents and Activists Speak Against Police Brutality and Repression at City Council Meeting."
http://laindymedia.org/news/2003/03/32934.php "'Nobody Saw Him Shooting at Anybody.'" Schou, Nick. OC Weekly. March 14-20, 2003.
"Badgering the Witness." Schou, Nick. OC Weekly. May 23-29, 2003.
"Elmer Bustos R.I.P." Schou, Nick. OC Weekly. July 11-17, 2003.