Dozens of farmworkers and Southwest Florida allies mark one year since Nicolas Morales was shot to death by a Collier County Sheriff’s deputy with vigil outside Collier County Sheriff’s office in Naples demanding justice for Nicolas, accountability for officers responsible for his brutal killing, mauling…

Nicolas Morales, Jr., 13: “In my opinion there should have been a conversation, not weapons, the officers could have tried to talk to my dad maybe with a therapist there or, at least an officer that knows how to manage with that type of situation. I wish every single day that my dad was alive. I am never going to forget all the memories we made but he is gone away too soon, and I won’t make anymore memories.”

Giselle Ramirez-Garcia, FGCU Student/Farmworker Alliance: “This tragedy has revealed to everyone why we, the community of Immokalee, have so much distrust of those who are supposed to serve and protect us. Sadly Nicolas isn’t the first case of police brutality in Immokalee, and if nothing is done soon, it won’t be the last. The children of Immokalee deserve a home where they can rest assured that calling 911 won’t kill their parents and leave them orphaned, the children of Immokalee should feel safe when officers arrive at the scene, the people  of Immokalee deserve to have their lives treated with dignity and respect.”

This past Friday, September 17th, marked one year since Nicolas Morales, single father and longtime farmworker, was shot to death by Collier County Sheriff’s Deputy Pierre Jean and mauled by a police K-9 as he lay dying in the streets of Immokalee’s Farmworker Village neighborhood, his death a senseless and avoidable tragedy caused by the lack of effective training and understanding on the part of the officers of the needs of people experiencing a mental health crisis.  To honor Nicolas, to give voice to his orphaned son Nicolas Morales Jr, 13, and his family, and to demand that never again should anyone in Collier County be killed by the police when all they need is help and support, dozens of farmworkers from Immokalee and their allies from around Southwest Florida gathered in Naples outside the Collier County Sheriff’s office on Friday afternoon calling for justice for Nicolas, accountability for the officers who killed him, and simple, common sense reforms from the Sheriff’s office who failed a much-loved single father in his time of need, and whose stubborn inaction continues to threaten the lives of his hardworking community.  

We have some pictures and words to share with you today from Friday’s vigil and petition delivery that capture the power of the protest and the conviction of those who were there to demand justice.  We also have the text of a second letter, included at the bottom of today’s post, from Nicolas Morales, Jr., who is in Texas with his sister and couldn’t be at the rally, but wanted his voice to be heard by Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk and all those gathered on Friday in his father’s name.   

Friday’s protest took place in two parts.  First, protesters gathered for a vigil at rush hour on the busy corner of Highway 41 and Airport Road in the heart of Naples, their clear and colorful signs declaring their demands and their contagious energy drawing honks and shouts of support from scores of drivers and their passengers…

Following the hour-long vigil, the protesters began the short march from the street…

… to the plaza outside the offices of the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, where they gathered for the next hour for a rally with speeches and music, emceed by the CIW’s Lupe Gonzalo (below)…

The speakers represented a broad swath of Immokalee community members and their allies, including Reverend Tony Fisher of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Greater Naples (below), speaking on behalf of over 30 clergy and religious organizations who signed a public letter in support of justice for Nicolas:

Rev. Tony Fisher: “… I am grateful to be here and grateful to be among you on this day when we remember Nicolas, especially one year ago and his shooting, his death, his murder. We are here to seek justice. And what does justice look like in public?  It looks like love, looks like compassion. What we are asking is simple. We are asking for accountability… I’m here representing over 30 clergy members and religious organizations who have signed a letter in solidarity with Nicolas, his family and the CIW.  We will be standing in solidarity with you throughout until we achieve what we need to achieve.  We have in Collier County a modern police force, with the ability to change, with appropriate action when they encounter any member of our County, every civilian, every person that is present here in the County.  To meet them in any kind of situation with compassion and not with force…”

and Giselle Ramirez-Garcia, an Immokalee resident, student at Florida Gulf Coast University, and member of the Student/Farmworker Alliance (we are including Giselle’s speech in its entirety to share its full power and impact):

Giselle Ramirez-Garcia: “My name is Giselle and I am here today representing Immokalee youth and the Student/Farmworker Alliance. It has been 1 year since the murder of Nicolas and nothing has changed.  Police violence continues and the people of Immokalee live in perpetual danger.  But we are still here calling for justice for Nicolas and demanding accountability and the safety of our community.  I am from Immokalee, it is the only home I have ever known, and for as long as I can remember, there has always been fear and apprehension towards law enforcement.

This tragedy has revealed to everyone why we, the community of Immokalee, have so much distrust of those who are supposed to serve and protect us. Sadly Nicolas isn’t the first case of police brutality in immokalee, and if nothing is done soon, it won’t be the last. The children of immokalee deserve a home where they can rest assured that calling 911 won’t kill their parents and leave them orphaned, the children of Immokalee should feel safe when officers arrive at the scene, the people of Immokalee deserve to have their lives treated with dignity and respect.

Growing up, I dreaded seeing those blue and red lights flashing.  I worried my parents wouldn’t understand the officers because of language barriers, that the officer’s patience would wear thin, and I wouldn’t see my parents again due to the lack of adequate training.

But that can be changed. The Naples Sheriff’s Office needs to implement the changes we are calling for today, and a lot of the reforms we are pushing for in reality should have been done years ago. This movement goes beyond this case, it is part of a larger call for the end of all state violence against black and brown bodies and inclusivity of marginalized communities in the way policies are created. For today, we ask that the Sheriffs Office do justice by Nicolas’ family and hold accountable the responsible parties. Our community is not safe until those officers are gone from our streets.”

and Chris Lomax, one of a team of attorneys representing Nicolas Morales’s family:

Chris Lomax: “… Let me start by saying unequivocally that what happened to Nicolas Morales was absolutely, positively wrong. What happened to Nicolas Morales did not have to happen. What happened to Nicolas Morales at the hands of the Collier County Sheriff’s Office should not have happened. Martin Luther King, Jr. said that the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice. But I say today that the arc of the moral universe is long but we must bend it toward justice!”

and Jesse Andrade, Nicolas Morales’ stepson and brother to Nicolas Morales Jr.:

Jesse Andrade: “… I know Nicolas as a person, he’s been in my life for many years… it hurts and especially for my little brother. I want to give a shout out to him, he’s listening right now. Junior, I love you, from the bottom of my heart, I’ll do anything I can for you, hopefully we get some change and some justice out of this.

Nicolas is your average Mexican-American hardworking tomato picker, orange picker. The food you get, the salad you get at the Walmart, or Winn Dixie, your local market, he probably picked that vegetable for you. That back breaking work not any person can do that. Everybody wants a nice job, but he didn’t have that opportunity. He came from Mexico and was an immigrant. He did his best and tried his hardest. Especially after my mom passed away, being a single dad, having to raise your 12 year old son by himself. It’s tough. That’s what he had to deal with, that’s the type of person I remember him being, a hardworking Mexican-American dad, alone by himself, just him and his son.

The first thing I thought when I got the phone call about Nicolas’ death was my little brother. At 6 years old, we lost our mom, that’s already really hard for a young kid. 12 years old, 13 years old, losing your dad next. You’re basically on your own, it’s like, why did it have to come to this? Why couldn’t I have been there to try to help Nicolas?

There’s a lot of questions unanswered, and there’s a lot of emotions. We just need some accountability, some kind of justice out of this. Because it’s not going to slide like that. It’s been a year, but we’re here to let them know we didn’t forget, we’re here to get justice for Nicolas, for my little brother and for all the family.

I want to thank everyone for coming, once again. And hopefully we do spark a change in this law enforcement, local Sheriff’s Office, end police violence, get justice for Nicolas and stop all the killings in general for every single civilian out here. Because we’re all human beings, we all eat, laugh, cry, and hug together. Let’s just make this world a better place.”

and finally the CIW’s Nely Rodriguez:

Nely Rodriguez: “… One year ago today, September 17th marks one year since Nicolas Morales was shot to death at close range by Cpl. Pierre Jean of the Collier County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) and mauled by a police K-9 as he lay dying, alone and calling out for his mother, in the quiet streets of Immokalee’s Farmworker Village neighborhood. The officers suffered no official consequences for killing a man in the throes of a mental health crisis whom they just as easily could have helped.

The consequences of their actions, on the other hand, cannot be undone, leaving a 13-year old boy forever orphaned and a heartbroken community outraged and demanding justice.

For the past year, the community’s demands for justice and common-sense police reforms have been ignored, while the need for change has grown only more urgent, and the community’s commitment to seeing their demands become policy has only deepened. It has become increasingly clear that what happened to Nicolas that morning in Farmworker Village was anything but an isolated incident, but rather part of a larger pattern of unchecked police abuse both here in Collier County and in the nation as a whole.

Death without consequence. Injury without remedy. Crime without punishment.

Our patience is not infinite.  After all too many years of silence, the time to act is now. Today, we are delivering a petition signed by hundreds of people in Immokalee, demanding real and meaningful changes to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office: 

An effective and responsive mental health crisis response team that serves all of Collier County, including and especially Immokalee. 

A Citizen Review Panel for Immokalee, so the farmworker community can have a real voice in how we are policed and hold the CCSO accountable when rules are broken and our safety and dignity are violated.  

And finally, justice for the Morales family, especially for Nicolas’s teenage son, Nicolas Jr.“

The rally ended with the delivery of the banner, signed by hundreds of Immokalee residents, to a representative of the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, Lt. Rene Gonzales (left), who listened to the concerns of the members of a delegation from the protesters…

… before ultimately receiving the banner and promising to convey it and its message to Sheriff Rambosk.

We close today with the words of Nicolas Morales Jr, who was unable to attend but had hoped to be able to travel from Texas, where he is living with his stepsister, to march and speak on behalf of his father.  We are including his message as a gallery of photographs of the five-page letter itself, to allow his hand and his words to speak for themselves: