Life said If this case ever comes to trial, all of this may be considered, in some way, by the judge- either at trial, or in sentencing, if it came to that. Pushing Free to the floor, repeatedly, looked like taunting behavior to me, designed to provoke a fight and induce the other to throw the first punch. Remove the serious injuries to the complainant, and Free would probably walk, as he would have been justified in using a reasonable level of force to stop the assault, beginning with pushing back and, if the assault escalated to fisticuffs, to use more force, as necessary. What will make it hard for the judge is the injuries to the complainant, which suggest a succession of powerful blows landed to different parts of the skull, while Free appeared uninjured. He may be compelled to find that Free went beyond justifiable self-defense into an area that would have constituted a new assault- this, upon his assailant. I, too, thought governments would intervene to find a way to move this case off the front pages, perhaps even stepping in to assist in the settlement of the case; but, my wife was convinced the consulates would do no more than assure themselves that the processes provided for under Mexican Law were being observed. So far, it looks as though she may have been right. As for the Mexican Government acting to put a stop to these proceedings, that would undermine- to some degree- the orderly working of their judicial system, and further justify the claim that there is no law/legal system here.
I visited the municipal jail, recently, and for a person who's been in and out of jails a lot in the U.S. (to talk with those within), I can say it's a pretty amazing place, and I don't mean that in a bad way. The thing about jails in "western" countries is they're very dehumanizing: people are often locked in cells by themselves where they stay for most of the time, let out only a few hours a day, if that. Everything is done on a precise schedule and there is no life other than the routine prescribed by the prison. If visitors come, they are often isolated from the prisoners behind plexiglass, speaking by telephone. This is very disheartening for all concerned. Contrast that with the municipal jail, here. The prisoners are locked down only at night; during the day, they are free to mill about, engage in conversation with whomever they please, and take part in a number of activities- sports, mainly- organized by the prisoners, themselves. Within the jail, life on the outside is recreated, with shops run by prisoners from which you can buy things, if you wish; cafes run by prisoners from which you can buy meals, if you like, waiters wait tables, hoping for a tip, etc. The city sponsors trainings and recreations of various sorts. For example, some time ago training was offered to the prisoners in the form of how to perform massage: the upshot of this was the creation of a "spa" after the training ended, staffed by the prisoners who completed the training and retained an interest in doing massage- who now work for tips. Most amazing of all, the spa is open to the public. The day I visited a fiesta was taking place, and lots of families were visiting: kids were running about the grounds, and music was playing loudly. Girlfriends, and boyfriends (yes, there are female prisoners, there), were visiting, hugging and kissing in the open air. A dance was planned for that evening, and visitors were told they would be expected to leave by midnight. While being confined is terribly difficult for anyone, to be confined under conditions like these allows a person to remain in touch with what life is like outside, and perhaps gives them a better chance of emerging from the experience psychologically intact. ____________________ Before reacting to what I've suggested the jail is like, please go and have a look for yourself.
Sounds lovely, but I doubt the ones who are wrongly detained share your view... :icon_eek: By the way, funny how the kid who got the serious injuries was seen out and about shortly after the whole incident... Maybe alcohol has a curing effect on serious injuries here in Mexico..? :icon_surprised: This whole thing is still very fishy to say the least...
I understand what you're saying, Rawkus, about jail. In my comment, quoted below, I let it be known I appreciated the pain of confinement, under any set of conditions. "Psychologically intact" is not a high standard, but it beats the alternative.
My husband's job puts him in a position to often speak with people who've just been released from that jail. He has relayed dozens of stories to me from past inmates there. It is certainly not run like a jail in the US. But I understand that there is serious brutality there, I understand that if you don't "pay for protection" that you face things I will not write here, things I'm certain no visitor would see anyway.
I must agree with RG here. I was expecting the daily co-ed "milling about" trip review of the jail to end up with a Mexican version of Kumbaya! NOT! The local jail is not a nice place. It is filled with corruption and mafias, bad and sparse food, unsanitary living conditions and all sorts of ugliness. Here is a note from today's paper: Por Esto! | Yucatán How would you like to have that guy behind you when you bent over to pick up the soap! I seriously doubt that anyone would choose a Mexican jail over an American one--not that either is a nice place to be and to consider it in any way acceptable or even slightly humane is to do a serious disservice to the inmates, jailers and Warden who do their very best to make it a miserable place to be.
I have no trouble imagining those things you suggested being present in that environment, Jim; but, it is much less easy to imagine what I described. That's why I suggested having a look.
Jim, on your visits, among these things which did you not see? -families visiting; -children playing; -boyfriends and girlfriends expressing affection for each other; -shops; -cafes; tables and waiters; -prisoners not in lockdown, but moving about the compound, mingling with all
Having never paid a visit to the Cancun jail I can only speculate that those prisoners that are allowed to visit so freely and have access to the public must be those on a "trustee" level or at least being held on less serious charges. The way that I have always understood things, is that the jail, as most in Mexico, is operated as a criminal racket, with both the other inmates and officials extorting whatever they can out of new arrivals be it for "protection" or for providing contraband, with everyone involved getting a share of the earnings. It's nice to hear that the jail isn't a total gulag but I think if it were anything resembling comfortable, destitute people would be lining up at the door to get in.
