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Carol Schmidt

Aug 22, 2004, 1:29 PM

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Los Angeles Times story on Mexico "vigilante justice"

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What do you think? Is a U.S. newspaper overblowing the scene as you see it in your area? I don't see this in San Miguel de Allende, but then I'm not exactly close to police incidents. Carol Schmidt ------------- >THE WORLD
In Mexico, Vigilantism Rises on Surge of Crime, Public Disgust

As faith in the police declines, townspeople increasingly mete out their own justice.

By Chris Kraul, Times Staff Writer http://www.latimes.com/...y?coll=la-home-world

>SANTA ROSA XOCHIAC, Mexico — Maria del Refugio Perez is a 60-year-old street vendor who says she abhors violence. But this month, she joined a raging mob that corralled, pummeled and hog-tied a suspected thief and almost burned her alive.

>Drawn by a butcher's shouts that she had caught the woman grabbing money from a cash drawer at her shop, Perez and other neighbors quickly seized her. Once the church bells in this Mexico City suburb started ringing, signaling a town emergency, the mob grew in size — and anger.

>"These things happen because the authorities don't do anything," Perez said, recalling days later how the woman, Juana Moncayo, was tied to a flagpole in the town plaza for several hours as the crowd of 200 insulted and beat her. "Some were yelling, 'Burn her! Burn her!' " when the police finally came to take her away, Perez said. ....

>Although statistics on mob justice aren't kept, experts agree that vigilantism is rising across Mexico in step with public disgust over violent crimes and the government's inability to stop them. It's the same disgust that sent a quarter of a million marchers into Mexico City's streets two months ago. ....>

lmaxine

Aug 22, 2004, 3:26 PM

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Los Angeles Times story on Mexico "vigilante justice"

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I have seen this and occasionally, other similar stories on the Mexican news programs. I think that it is true that many people really have no faith in the justice system, so want to take matters into their own hands.
Now just the other day, somewhere in the US, a similar thing happened to an old man who was caught peeping at a young child. I don't remember where it was, probably saw this item on CNN. The whole thing was caught on tape, and it was clear that the police weren't called till after a lot of damage was done to the "perpetrator."

"He upon whose heart the dust of Mexico has lain will find no peace in any other land." Malcolm Lowry

Kimpatsu Hekigan

Aug 22, 2004, 7:25 PM

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Mob justice in Mexico

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Mob justice has a long history in Mexico. Sam Quiñones, journalist-author of a great book, True Tales From Another Mexico, has a story entitled, "Lynching in Huejutla," and described thusly:

Quote

Two traveling salesmen make an inappropriate remark to some school girls in a working-class neighborhood of a sweltering small town. Twenty-four hours later, they are hacked, beaten and hung from the town bandstand by an enraged mob that accused them of being foot soldiers in a Texas-based ring of child kidnapers who not only trafficked in organs, but had a liver or two in the cab of their truck The story of a lynching.

Sam's now living in Mexico City and working as a freelancer, and on his next book. His website is here:

http://www.samquinones.com/

-- K.H.

Before enlightenment: Chop wood, haul water.
After enlightenment: Chop wood, haul water.

tonyburton

Aug 22, 2004, 7:31 PM

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Los Angeles Times story on Mexico "vigilante justice"

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This village is located on the edge of Mexico D.F., and I knew it very well indeed 20 years ago. The residents have a long history of looking after their own affairs. For example, even back in the early 1980s, it was extremely unusual to see any police or any police vehicle in the village; as I recall it, the story went that the last police car to enter had been ceremoniously picked up and turned around before being escorted back to the highway. Situations like this, of course, have both good and bad sides to them. Back then, it was certainly hard to imagine any village anywhere where the residents had a clearer sense of purpose or greater determination to acheive their goals. But twenty years is a long time, and perhaps things have changed for the worse.

talosian

Aug 25, 2004, 8:44 PM

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Los Angeles Times story on Mexico "vigilante justice"

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Shades of "Death Wish" with Charles Bronson.

Spock
"When all logical explanations have failed, we must look to the illogical for the answer.