Wheels of Justice
by Pinché Tejano
Let me tell you the story of a boy by the name of Esequiel Hernandez, Jr. This story will unfortunately be posthumous, due his being gunned down, assassin-style by a group of Marines on patrol on American soil. On May 20, 1997, Esequiel was herding the pride of his poor Hispanic family in Redford, Texas. He took his goats down to water everyday after school. What he did not know was he was being stalked by a group of four marines who had been camped just outside his small village for about three days.
That's right folks, American Marines on COMBAT patrol on American soil. This shit would never fly in Nebraska. Could you imagine? There's no fucking way. In the name of the no-win Drug War, the lower Rio Grande Valley was put under Martial Law. Last time I checked, this was not the mission of the United States Marine Corps, and even less likely is the prospect of these marines having been given proper training to handle such a task.
Combine these ingredients, and you have a recipe for disaster, Texas-style. While the facts have never fully come to light; there are certain parts of this encounter which should raise flags for any Texan, or American for that matter. Here are the facts as we have been told by the Man of why Esequiel Hernandez became the first U.S. civilian to be intentionally killed on American soil by a regular U.S. soldier in 29 years.
To start off this odyssey, let us begin by profiling the horrid animal the Marines faced on that dusty plain of mythical Texas that fateful day. He must of been one huge mean bastard for a tactical squad of four marines, armed, and in full gear to feel the need to end his life. Just look at the evidence. He volunteered at the Living History project at the Fort Leaton Historical Site, and was even selected as a student-aide for the historic re-enactments of the Longhorn Cattle Drives at Big Bend Ranch State Park. What an asshole.
His love of his Hispanic culture was so great when he was the only boy to sign up for traditional dance classes, he went and recruited five more boys to keep the art form alive. God, the full scope of this jerk is coming into focus.
Far away is the house where Banuelos shot Hernandez. From there it would have been impossible to see the Marines in thier field camo.
Unlike most men his age of 18, he was not saying his money to by Air Jordans or the newest Playstation game. He was saving his money to buy enough bricks to add an addition to his family home for his own private room. He didn't venture across the river to Mexico to drink under age, and was known for his shy but approachable manner. It¹s a surprise no one killed him sooner.
Esequiel Hernandez, Jr., RIP
What horrible thing was he doing before he was shot? His father interrupted him from studying to go out and water the goats. What a jerk, studying??? I'm glad this menace to society has finally been eradicated before any white women were ravaged.
Now, we come to the other main actors in this tragic event which has become a signpost of just how much American apathy has built. Four marines were in the field being lead by an off-site, NON-commissioned officer. Unknown to the town was the fact that this unit, part the unofficial full-scale war of the government against it's own people, had been camping and stalking them for several days before the incident. During this time, there was no way the Marines could have missed the fact these people were ranchers, and ranchers water their goats. We are funny that way. Following that assumption, a boy with a herd of goats is not running drugs. Nope. In fact I'd be willing to bet he was a rancher.
The Marines were wearing Ghillie camouflage with twigs and leaves interwoven with brown and gray fabric that blurs the human form making them invisible, even from a few feet. These are Marines who are trained to be kill machines, and they are the best at the world and I personal applaud them and pray for them in Iraq. Marines either hunker down and take it, or shoot to kill. The firearm they were facing, carried by Esequiel was a World War I single combine .22. A glorified BB gun. Scarface of the Ghetto Boys got shot at point blank by his girlfriend and drove himself to the hospital after getting shot by a .22. The Marines were in full-camoflauge war wear, battle armor and some 200 yards away. You do the math on who had the advantage.
The second major problem is the angle in which Hernandez was shot. Mainly the point being he was shot in the back. There was no way he could have been facing the Marines from where the fatal shot was fired. If only the goats could talk they would tell you. Also, he was shot right by his house, which an well-trained reckon unit surely would have realized was his home. Hernandez was right-handed, which meant his left side would be facing his target when firing. However, he was wounded on the right side, said his attorney, Dan Estrada of Fort Worth. The way the casings were laid on the ground, the metal imprints on his flesh and slight bruises tell the story of his third shot being in the opposite direction of the Marines, which would easily tell way the bullet was in his back.
The site where Esequiel Hernandez, Jr. fall to his death.
Marines are not trained to say "Stop! Police! Put down your weapon!" Nor are they trained to yell, "We hiding in your bushes, please go herd somewhere else." Which brings us to a major point in the case, what the hell were Marines doing on private property? The Marines must obtain permission before they can conduct activities on privately owned land. Marine Col. Thomas Kelley said they had permission, but Hernandez was murdered on the land of Alberto Carrasco, who said he never exercised that option. Oops.
Set all this aside for a moment and pretend that the Marines did, in fact, feel threatened from the little goat herder, their actions afterwards were a bit odd. To begin, they never administered first aide, ever. Even worse is they did not call for assistance until a full 22 minutes after the incident. Later autopsy reports show that he actually bled to death, but why would the Marines want him alive to tell his side? Even weirder is they took their sweet time contacting sheriff's Deputy Oscar Gallegos, and initially the story was Hernandez had fallen down a well and hit his head.
The Marines all instantly stonewalled and offered little to no information, only saying they were acting in self-defense. Military operations in the area were suspended and these poor Marines were hounded too much, so the Marines closed the case and sent the task unit in question back home to Camp Pendleton, California. District Attorney Albert Valadez could sense the haste and tried to get the records, only to hit upon a trend from here on out, stonewalling from the military. But he is not alone, other more influential people also felt the silence.
A major crusader for the cause, Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, chairman of the House panel overseeing immigration issues at the time, sent a five-page letter to Attorney General Janet Reno complaining of lack of cooperation from her department. Department of Defense lawyers rebuffed attempts by Texas Rangers and Rep. Smith to get the most basic of information. And in August of 1997, Mr. Smith accused the Justice Department of hampering his staff's inquiries into the shooting.
"For two months, my congressional oversight has been obstructed by a never-ending series of useless referrals, unreturned phone calls and broken promises," Smith said.
Though the community was outraged, a grand jury decided to not indict the soldiers in a case scarred by secrecy. The military followed suit and there were no court-martials. An explanation was never given besides, "self-defense."
And what has become of Redford, the town that has tried to make Hernandez's case a national concern? The town constantly lives under fear. Children will not go out to play in fear of getting shot. One family has sold their goats and will not let their children out in the afternoons. The hordes of Counselors and Psychologists they sent to Columbine to help the children there cope with the trauma never arrived at Redford, even after repeated request from the National Hispanic Caucus.
The town's goat co-operative is no longer operational and the town listless. Paranoia? Not at all. Locals tell of the more pressure they put on national media, the more the harassment they get from the military. Residents reported nighttime flights with lights off, goats scared away on purpose by helicopters, and people on horseback being patrolled and observed from unmarked helicopters. They even tell of 2am flights so low it feels like their house will crumble.
This is America, the land of the free, or is it? All this town wants is a few simple things that can help their wounds heal, and any self-respecting citizen of these United States should be more than willing to help. The most glaring one is their feeling the military should have rules for engagement for dealing with citizens on American soil. I was shocked and appalled to find out most of the units just seemed to be cowboying out there in our own backyard. The second thing they want is Hernandez to be clear of any wrong doing, which seems simple enough right? Wrong. The American government needs a scapegoat for this and dead men don't talk.
Last of all, they do not want American Marines patrolling their backyards. Could you imagine looking out your bay window and seeing a platoon on patrol going down your street? If you don't take action now, this may not be a hypothetical question, but reality. A reality that has already ended in tragedy. Is the arrest of a few illegal migrant workers worth the death of American citizens?
Wake up America, or you could be the next one crushed under the wheels of justice.
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