http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/artic ... E_ID=46484

Mexican police charged in American's death
Video shows amused officers
abusing California woman
Posted: September 24, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com



Mexican police officers have been charged in the death of a California woman in a Baja jail cell.

An investigation by the Spanish-language sister station of KSND-TV in San Diego also revealed three others will face charges tied to conspiracy to cover up the death of Paulina Baeza, 20, a college student in Irvine, Calif.

Baeza was arrested Aug. 9 by police in Ensenada, Mexico, about 60 miles south of San Diego.

Liza Davis, a representative of the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana, told the TV station police received two reports that she had been behaving in an aggressive, disoriented manner in public.

A surveillance video from inside the jail shows Baeza being carried and dragged by officers a short time before she was reported dead, KSND reported.

An officer can be seen grabbing Baeza by her hair in the video. Another one is shown laughing, and one office appears to draw his finger across his throat, then dances as the girl is hauled away, the TV station said.

Davis said an autopsy by Mexican authorities showed Baeza later died of blunt force trauma that caused a brain hemorrhage. Her remains have been repatriated to family members in California.

A security videotape obtained by Mexican authorities shows Baeza was held in the air as authorities tried to subdue her then was dropped and hit her head.

Baeza's father, Pablo Baeza, calling his daughter's treatment aggressive and abusive, welcomed news of the charges.

The Orange County Register reported Baeza's Chevy Blazer had been impounded after the vehicle was ticketed for blocking a driveway.

Baeza, according to Mexican police, was arrested for trespassing when she climbed into a Chevy Blazer that was not hers, reported the paper.

The woman's mother, Carmen, told the Register her daughter suffered from bipolar disorder and had not been taking medication for nearly 60 days before her trip to Mexico.

She said her daughter had no history of violence but had become verbally abusive when not taking her medication.