The ACLU issues it's own report on the San Diego Fires

Politicians may be quick with the "how much better was this than Katrina" references but the San Diego fires still had their own issues. The ACLU released a report summarizing the problems in response for "vulnerable populations" during the San Diego firestorm. From ACLU.org :

The report, "Firestorm: Treatment of Vulnerable Populations During the San Diego Fires" recounts the positive and negative aspects of the fire response and documents the experiences of scores of people who suffered harassment, racial profiling and intimidation. The report recommends specific reforms to avoid such problems in future disasters. The full report can be found at: www.aclusandiego.org/news_item.php?article_id=000325

Some of the stirring facts found in the report:

• In a revealing omission, the reverse 911 calling system, which was widely heralded for its ability to quickly notify people of evacuation orders, delivered messages only in English, despite available technology that could have easily accommodated other languages. As a result, San Diego County's 30 percent Latino population was not adequately notified of the evacuation.
• San Diego Police, in violation of their own policy, detained and handed over to U.S. Border Patrol a family they accused of looting and intending to sell relief supplies when witness testimony from relief volunteers and the family strongly discount those allegations. The Border Patrol deported seven family members, including a 2-year-old U.S. citizen and children aged 8 and 13. The incident sparked fear in immigrant communities and preceded a rash of misguided, aggressive enforcement by police and Sheriff's deputies at evacuation centers. (p.5-6)
• The police conducted a sweep of the Qualcomm evacuation center late Tuesday night, checking for IDs and ejecting everyone without IDs showing they were from an affected area. On Wednesday morning, the police instituted problematic ID checks at the gate. (p.6)
• San Diego Police ordered a news cameraman to stop filming the aftermath of an arguably illegal detention that resulted in the deportation of a family trying to take relief supplies. The police officer threatened that if the cameraman continued to film, it would ruin the local CBS affiliate's relationship with the police department