Cop's First Question to Cyclist Hit by Truck: ‘You’re Illegal?’
An officer of the law asked a cyclist who was struck by a pickup truck near a three-way intersection in Key West, Florida, his immigration status before giving any police assistance.
While lying down on the ground from a collision with a truck, Marcos Antonio Huete received no medical attention or police assistance until he answered Sgt. David Lariz's questions of his immigrant status.
Sgt. Lariz is heard asking Huete "You're illegal?" Footage of the conversation was recorded from the sergeant's body camera and it was released by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.
"You're illegal? Are you a legal citizen or no?" asks Lariz. The sergeant continued to pepper the 31-year-old with questions about his immigration status, like if he spoke English and if he had a passport or any form of identification. Eventually, after a series of questions, the sergeant finally inquired if Huete wanted medical attention.
Unfortunately for Huete, an undocumented Honduran immigrant that is now arrested and is likely to be deported, was not seen as an injured human and instead as an illegal immigrant by police.
"It's really outrageous that the first response of a first responder was not about the safety or well-being of a victim but whether or not he was in the country legally," Maria Rodriguez, the executive director of the Florida Immigration Coalition, told Vocativ. "When law enforcement is more concerned about immigration status than public safety it undermines the integrity of their own work and that hurts us all."
In the morning of April 27, Huete rode his bicycle to work. He was hit from behind in a pedestrian crosswalk from a woman driving a GMC Sierra pickup truck, according to a police incident report.
Huete lived in the US undocumented for about seven years, reports Univision. His family says he supports his mother and two daughters that live in Honduras by working construction and other off the book jobs.
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