Where the Sun Doesn’t Shine, Part 3: VIPD Stonewalls on Body-Worn Camera Policy

Since the separate killings of two men by police officers this summer, the V.I. Police Department has declined to answer all but the most basic questions about the incidents and the officers involved, citing departmental policies that a VIPD spokesperson has also failed to provide.

Alejandro Torres III — who in April spoke with the Source and other media outlets about pressure from the V.I. Housing Finance Authority to vacate the LBJ Gardens neighborhood — was killed in July after his mother, Luz Fulgence, called 9-1-1. Fulgence told the Source in July that officers never spoke to her before shooting Torres one street away.

According to a statement police issued at the time, “a struggle ensued with the son and both officers who responded. At that time, one of the officers discharged their firearm striking the male once.”

One month later, police on St. Thomas shot and killed 36-year-old Tyler Simpson while responding to a burglary call in Frenchman’s Bay.

The Source has repeatedly requested information about the shootings under the territory’s public records laws. On Aug. 8, the Source asked VIPD spokesperson Glen Dratte: whether VIPD had finished its internal review of the shooting; whether the involved officers were on administrative leave and whether any disciplinary actions had been taken; and whether the involved officers were wearing body cameras. The Source did not receive a response.