NO CRIMINAL TRIAL FOR SCOTTSBLUFF POLICE

OMAHA - There is not enough evidence to criminally prosecute three
Scottsbluff police officers for alleged brutality, according to a U.S.
Department of Justice investigation.

In April, the Criminal Civil Rights Division investigated Ramon
Villa-Velazquez's claims that the officers mistreated him during an arrest
last spring, Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Wellman said. The Mexican native
had written the department to complain about the incident.

The Mexican government joined Hispanic community leaders on July 7 in
calling for a criminal investigation. They wanted the U.S. government to
determine if there has been a pattern of officers mistreating Hispanics in
Scottsbluff, a western Nebraska city of 14,700.

Villa-Velazquez's American Civil Liberties Union attorneys did not know
about the April investigation, ACLU Nebraska Director Tim Butz said.

"It seems the government is set to bury this, and we will seek our
vindication in civil court," Butz said.

In a federal civil lawsuit filed last month, Villa-Velazquez alleges that
the officers illegally entered his home and beat him in front his family on
March 16, 2000, before arresting him for violating immigration laws.

Villa-Velazquez's attorney Stephen Charest said he would not know if the
results of the criminal investigation would affect the civil lawsuit until
he has seen it.

Federal law requires proof that a police officer not only used excessive
force, but also that the officer did so with a criminal purpose, U.S.
Attorney Mike Heavican said.

Acting out of fear, mistake or even poor judgment is not criminal, Heavican
said.

Villa-Velazquez remains in a county jail in Iowa awaiting transfer to a
federal medical detention facility. He pleaded guilty this spring to
illegal re-entry. Villa-Velazquez had been deported following a 1997
conviction for possession of marijuana with intent to deliver.

Charest said his client cannot stand up straight because of his injuries
and was denied medical treatment until after he was transferred to a
Lexington jail.

Villa-Velazquez's family remains in Scottsbluff.