?The National Police killed 40 percent less under (General) Marte? reads the Diario Libre headline in connection to a report on the drop in police-related deaths over the past year. During the first 365 days of General Jaime Marte Martinez?s tenure as head of the National Police, the police have been responsible for 70 fewer deaths than the year before.
There were, however, some troubling recent figures included in the report as well. Since August, 71 civilian deaths have been attributed to members of the police force ? a figure more than double that of police-related deaths for the previous seven-month period.
According to human rights groups, during the tenure of the previous police chief, Major General Pedro de Jesus Candelier, the police were connected to as many as 350 deaths. There were, however, no kidnappings.
