The investigation into how a U.S. Marine veteran ended up detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement remains ongoing, but video from the day of his arrest shows how quickly police learned of his citizenship.
Through a Freedom of Information Act request, 13 ON YOUR SIDE obtained thirteen videos captured from three different officers who were on scene the day Jilmar Ramos Gomez was first arrested. Ramos Gomez was caught trespassing at Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital last November.
Grand Rapids Police placed Captain Kurt Vanderkooi on leave back in March in connection to the case, and he remains on leave as they continue investigating the circumstances of this case. A representative for the department, Sgt. Cathy Williams, said they hope to have a resolution soon.
"All of this time has gone by and we still don't have answers and we still don't have a decision here," said ACLU Michigan Senior Staff Attorney Miriam Aukerman.
Aukerman said her office has not had the time to fully review the video, but based on her initial review she said it appears officers "absolutely knew" that Ramos Gomez was a U.S. citizen.
"People, I think, are still really upset about what happened here. Jilmar's family is obviously really upset about what happened here," Aukerman said.
"We need to have answers and we need to have accountability."
► Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter.