Enrique Delgado Garcia’s Death

Statement on Enrique Delgado Garcia

At Lawyers for Civil Rights, we are hearing alarming reports that Enrique Delgado Garcia may have been deliberately targeted due to his Latino identity, as one of the few people of color in the Massachusetts State Police Academy. 

Mr. Delgado Garcia may have been intentionally paired with a more experienced counterpart for the fatal boxing match, raising serious concerns that this may have been an effort to ensure his failure and pressure him to reconsider his place in the academy. 
These troubling reports raise the strong specter of a hostile environment with racial profiling and hazing to undermine Latino success and advancement in the Massachusetts State Police Academy. 

Lawyers for Civil Rights urges the State to:

• investigate Mr. Delgado Garcia’s death as a possible hate crime and act of racial violence, and present any applicable criminal charges against perpetrators; 
• immediately suspend anyone potentially involved and responsible for the fatal boxing match to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the remaining cadets in the Massachusetts State Police Academy;
• terminate all officials who failed to properly supervise Mr. Delgado Garcia’s training conditions; 
• make systemic changes to the culture of the Massachusetts State Police to prevent hazing and racial profiling; and 
• proactively make amends with Mr. Delgado Garcia’s family by providing appropriate and meaningful monetary compensation for their loss. 

Each of these action steps is critical to restore public trust and confidence in the Massachusetts State Police.