Somerville News Coverage of MS-13 Arrest

[cemeterygates.livejournal.com]

I think that the Somerville News piece about the recent MS-13 arrest did an unusually good job depicting the grey area of morality that is so often ignored by the media in their coverage of criminals. I know that such an opinion is commonly viewed by the masses as bleeding-heart, or liberal-guilt, or what have you, but I can honestly say I am proud to be part of a community that recognizes the human side of all people, and I feel this article is an excellent example of that. I do not know specifically what actions Morales was responsible for as a gangster, and I do not question that MS-13 is a very powerful and dangerous entity; but because of this article perhaps a few more people also reflect on the fact that no-one is only a thug.

I would welcome your thoughts.

Comments

[ruxxell.livejournal.com]

wtf is ms-13

[firstfrost.livejournal.com]

If you change your "a ref" tag to "a href" than the link should work. The article is here (http://somervillenews.typepad.com/the_somerville_news/2007/08/feds-raid-local.html) .

[ifotismeni]

you know it's funny, before news of the bust happened i didn't even know ms-13 existed up here, i thought it was a pretty much california-only phenomenon.

but yea, that article's good journalism, hands down. showing the impact of a bust like this is really critical for a strong local story like this. kudos to the reporter.

[derekp.livejournal.com]

This is a horrible report, really. It's nice that they showed that Morales was a human being and didn't murder EVERYONE he knew, but perhaps the reporter could have done a google search for his name and come across his WANTED poster on the FBI website.

"He has a long criminal history including several assaults, burglary, narcotics transportation, and domestic violence."

"Robert Morales is wanted for the alleged murder of two men and the attempted murder of a woman in Los Angeles, California. On July 31, 2000, Morales allegedly shot and killed a man waiting at a bus stop. On November 9, 2000, Morales allegedly shot and killed a fellow MS-13 gang member, and fired several shots at the victim's girlfriend."

I'd be crying if I were about to go to prison for the rest of my life too...

[ron_newman]

If this person was in fact guilty of a crime, the Somerville police should have arrested him, and charged him, and turned him over to the criminal justice system for trial. If there was not enough evidence to do this, the federal immigration thugs had no business barging into our city.

[ron_newman]

Also the top story in today's printed Somerville Journal: Feds swoop down and arrest alleged gang members, spread fear among area immigrants

Have any of your friends and neighbors been harassed or taken away this week? If so, please comment here. We need to get a full picture of what the Feds did in our city.

[lonelyholiday.livejournal.com]

That's interesting because just yesterday I listened to this piece (http://www.onthemedia.org/episodes/2007/08/24/segments/84475).

[srakkt.livejournal.com]

I'm not certain that I follow your reasoning as to why this depicts a "grey area of morality". This man was arrested by federal agents - a traumatizing experience for anyone, and particularly for someone trying to build a legitimate life for themselves, a saddening one. Whether or not this man is guilty of what he's been arrested for doesn't change that, certainly. But the converse is also true: that there was enough evidence in this case to gain an arrest warrant and make an arrest. It's an unfortunate and traumatizing experience certainly for mister Morales and unfortunately, it seems, for many of our neighbors here in Somerville who stayed home from work out of fear.

Is this a moral grey area? It's saddening, certainly. And possibly infuriating, in the case of people who've been made to fear leaving their homes. Is it morally ambiguous, though? I'm not trying to argue with you; I'm trying to understand your point.

[srakkt.livejournal.com]

What troubles me most about this entire series of raids is that it seems, from the reporting (at least in English-language sources; I don't read Spanish) that legal residents (read: citizens, permanent residents, etc) in our communities who are of Latin American extraction are being made afraid enough to stay home. This sort of an operation should be accompanied by an enormous amount of public outreach to reassure our neighbors who are here legally.

[ron_newman]

Another good article on the Somerville News website today: As raids spread fear, feds stay silent