July 31, 2003|By Laura Barnhardt | Laura Barnhardt,SUN STAFF
Before a Baltimore County police officer shot and killed a 22-year-old Honduran immigrant, department officials were planning to offer more classes to officers who want to learn Spanish phrases such as "Stop!" and "Drop the gun!"
Some neighbors, friends and Latino community activists feel that if the officers in Essex had spoken Spanish, the death of Francisco Perez may have been avoided. But activists also said this week that they welcome any training that could help diffuse confrontations between non-English-speaking residents and police officers.
"I think it's a good first step," said Larry Ortiz, a Latino activist in Baltimore County and professor at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. "The tragedy of this is that a phrase or two in Spanish could possibly have circumvented the situation."
Baltimore County police maintain that a language barrier was not a factor in whether the officer was justified in shooting Perez. They also say two witnesses told them Perez spoke English - contrary to the assertions of some friends and neighbors who said he did not.
However, department officials said they had recognized the need for officers to be able to communicate with the growing Hispanic population in the county long before officers were dispatched to investigate the Essex armed robbery Sunday morning and confronted Perez.
Since the county Police Department began offering "survival" Spanish to officers in February, all classes have been full, said Bill Toohey, a county police spokesman. The number of officers who want to learn basic Spanish has been so overwhelming that the department will offer six classes next year - two more than this year, he said.
The class, which is taught by professors from the Community College of Baltimore County in Dundalk, will also be longer next year to cover more material, Toohey said. Currently, the class is a three-day course, with one day of follow-up review. Next year, it will be a four-day class, with an additional day of review.
The Maryland State Police offer a similar elective course.
"I don't expect police officers to speak every language," said Angelo Solera, a Latino community activist in Baltimore. "But training can prevent many of these situations. We have a person who should not be dead. Police officers have a responsibility to minority communities."
In Baltimore and Annapolis, many officers carry pocket-size brochures with Spanish basic commands such as "stop" and translations for reading the rights of those arrested.
Baltimore also has liaison officers assigned to work with Hispanic and Korean communities - something Baltimore County activists would like to see in their community.
"I think this population will continue to grow," said Ortiz. "And I don't think this will be an isolated situation. ... These are emerging issues that have to be dealt with structurally by the county government."
He is among several activists who are exploring whether a group could be formed to help county leaders assess business, educational and social services available to Hispanic residents.
Baltimore County's Hispanic population nearly doubled in the past decade, growing from 7,645 in 1990 to 13,774 in 2000 - about 2 percent of the population, U.S. Census Bureau figures show.
Nine county police officers are fluent in Spanish and other officers speak languages ranging from Italian to Russian, Toohey said.
Like most departments in the Baltimore metro area, Baltimore County police keep lists of volunteers and officers who can translate. And when they are not available, officers and 911 operators can call a telephone translation service called Language Line, which has translators for 150 languages and is available 24 hours a day. The service also will assist in figuring out what language a person may be speaking.
The state police and police in Anne Arundel and Howard counties also use that service.
However, Baltimore County police officials said calling a translator was not an option Sunday when, they said, Perez walked toward officers with a 6-inch knife and an 18-inch screwdriver in his hands, despite officers' commands to drop the weapons.
"We didn't have the luxury of that time in this case," Toohey said. Perez's neighbors said he was trying to protect friends who had been robbed. Police arrested two youths in the robbery.
Police estimate that a suspect with a knife within 21 feet of an officer can reach that officer before he or she can pull a trigger. Toohey said crime scene investigators estimate that Perez was five to 10 feet from the officer who shot him twice in the chest.
A Baltimore City officer shot - but did not kill - a drunken man who spoke little or no English two years ago after the man allegedly came toward the officer with a pellet gun that the officer thought was a pistol.
Police policies on use of force generally do not make exceptions for people who may not speak English or who may not be able to hear officers or understand them because of altered mental status.
"These are split-second decisions," said Toohey.
When possible, he said, officers call for translators and mobile crisis teams to help diffuse volatile situations.
Sun staff writer Julie Bykowicz contributed to this article.
