By Maylee Carbajal | Symposium Editor

November 21, 2023

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Thirst, hunger, and no help. This was and continues to be the reality for Puerto Rican prisoners. Milton Pinilla Quintero endured the harsh reality as a Puerto Rican inmate. Milton was an inmate at Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico when Hurricane Maria struck.[1] Hurricane Maria left Puerto Rico in shambles, the inmates in MDC especially felt the effect of the natural disaster.[2] The abuse and lack of governmental involvement can be directly linked to Puerto Rico’s territory status.

When Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico, the already appalling conditions within the prison became deplorable.[3] Puerto Rico was pleading for “mainland” assistance while inmates like Milton were fighting to stay alive.[4] Milton lived with feces due to improper plumbing, which the officers were aware of.[5] Milton’s numerous requests for plumbing solutions were ignored.[6] Because Milton’s pleas for basic human living conditions were ignored, he had feces and urine throughout the floor of his cell when the toilet overflowed.[7] His requests for water and cleaning supplies were dismissed.[8]

Because Milton’s persistent requests for basic human necessities were disregarded, legal action was taken. In 2018, Milton, alongside his attorneys, filed and submitted an informative motion addressing the unceasing human rights violations.[9] Milton’s is only one story, there are hundreds of thousands of inmates in Puerto Rico with similar stories.

Puerto Ricans have their unfortunate destiny handed by the United States and Puerto Rican prisoners endure the effect of ongoing colonization. Puerto Rico was independent for hundreds of years prior to the Spaniards colonizing and claiming authority over the land.[10] Following the Spanish conquest came bloodshed and tears from the Spanish-American War that awarded the United States dominance over Puerto Rico through a treaty agreement.[11] Puerto Rico was and remains a territory of the United States.[12]

Puerto Rico is considered an “unincorporated territory of the United States.”[13] An unincorporated territory, as defined by United States government, is “[a] United States insular area in which the United States Congress has determined only selected parts of the United States Constitution apply.”[14] Most recently, the Supreme Court of the United States further supported Congress’ ability to limit the applicable aspects of the Constitution for territories by excluding Puerto Ricans from the Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a federal relief program.[15] A territory does not have “the rights, responsibilities, or powers of a state or nation.”[16] Thus, Puerto Rico, a territory, does not have its own sovereignty. Rather, it is a mere possession.[17]

Under the United States’ partial leadership, Puerto Ricans gained U.S. citizenship. In return for the “lavish favor” of granting them citizenship, Puerto Rican men became eligible to conscript into World War I.[18] About 18,000 new citizens of the United States were drafted.[19] The history of the relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States illustrates how the United States profits at the direct expense of Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans. Consequently, there is a major imbalance of benefits between territories and the “mainland” that persists to this day. The negative consequences and externalities are borne exclusively by one side: Puerto Rico. Such negative effects exist in a multitude of ways: (1) Puerto Ricans—who are United States citizens––cannot cast a vote for the presidency; (2) indigenous and Puerto Rican land is being taken over for manufacturing and tourism, forcing citizens to flee to the “mainland” for agricultural employment opportunities; (3) the island received little federal assistance when Hurricane Maria, which was followed by Hurricane Fiona, devastated the island; and (4) Puerto Rican American citizens being deprived of their basic human necessities.[20]

The United States adopted the Constitution in 1787.[21] Article IV of the U.S. Constitution applies to commonwealths and territories.[22] Puerto Rico is categorized as a “commonwealth”[23] or “territory,” and thus, Art. IV of the United States Constitution applies.[24] Due to Puerto Rico’s territory status, the United States government’s permission was required to establish its own Constitution. [25] United States granted permission and thus, the Puerto Rican Constitution was established in 1952.[26] Although Puerto Rico has its own Constitution, sovereignty and self-governance does not exist within the territory.

Puerto Rico has been a part of the United States for decades but has not reaped the same benefits the 50 states do. The island’s status as a territory is the root cause of the island’s state of turmoil. With each natural disaster the Puerto Rican people suffer, and with their calls for aid being routinely ignored, the island is further abandoned and reduced to an outlier. Puerto Rico’s status as a territory has a direct correlation to the abuse and neglectful conditions inmates incarcerated on the island face. This is especially perceptible when Puerto Rican prison conditions are compared to the inmates housed in the 50 states. Ultimately, the United States must decide whether to grant the island sovereignty or statehood. Importantly, the United States must decide imminently because otherwise, inhumane conditions will continue to sweep and plague Puerto Rican prisons.

[1] See Informative Motion on Violations of Human Rights at MDC-Guaynabo During the Aftermath of Hurricane Maria and Subsequent Transfer of Inmates to the Federal Correctional Institution at Yazoo City, Mississippi, Exhibit 1 at 1, United States v. Pinilla Quintero, 2 (D.P.R. 2018) No. 16-463 [hereinafter Pinilla Aff.].

[2] See generally id.

[3] See generally id.

[4] See generally id; Mainland, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mainland (last visited Nov. 20, 2023). The term “mainland” is used here to further emphasize the disparate treatment and lack of acknowledgement for Puerto Rico because it is a territory not connected to the 50 states through physical means.

[5] Pinilla Aff., supra note 1, at ¶ 2.

[6] Id.

[7] See id. at 4.

[8] Id.

[9] Informative Motion on Violations of Human Rights at MDC-Guaynabo During the Aftermath of Hurricane Maria and Subsequent Transfer of Inmates to the Federal Correctional Institution at Yazoo City, Mississippi, United States v. Pinilla Quintero, 2 (D.P.R. 2018) No. 16-463 [hereinafter Informative Mot.].

[10] History.com Editors, Puerto Rico, History, https://www.history.com/topics/us-states/puerto-rico-history (Aug. 1, 2023).

[11] Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain art. 2, Dec. 10, 1898, 30 Stat. 1754, T.S. No. 343.

[12] See generally id.

[13] Ani Kington, U.S. Territories and Commonwealths, InterExchange, (Aug. 13, 2012) https://www.interexchange.org/articles/career-training-usa/2012/08/13/u-s-territories-and-commonwealths/.

[14] Office of Insular Affairs, Definitions of Insular Area Political Org., U.S. Department of the Interior, https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/politicatypes#:~:text=unincorporated%20territory,the%20United%20States%20Constitution%20apply (Last visited Nov. 20, 2023).

[15] United States v. Vaello Madero, 596 U.S. 159, 161 (2022).

[16] What Does It Mean to Be a Territory of the United States?, Puerto Rico Rep. (Apr. 17, 2018), https://www.puertoricoreport.com/educators-mean-territory-united-states/#.Y3977ezMLvW.

[17] Id. For Puerto Rico, this means having limited benefits and rights while providing the most profit for the United States.

[18] History.com Editors, supra note 10.

[19] Id.

[20] See generally Fundamental Right, Cornell L. Sch., https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/fundamental_right (last visited Nov. 20, 2023) see also Nick Brown, How Dependence on Corporate Tax Creaks Corroded Puerto Rico’s Economy, Reuters Investigates, (Dec. 2016), https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-puertorico-economy/; see Damaris Suárez, Inmates Claim Conditions in Prisons are Deplorable After Hurricane Fiona, no Water and Energy, Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (Sept. 24, 2022), https://periodismoinvestigativo.com/2022/09/after-hurricane-fiona-inmates-claim-conditions-in-prisons-are-deplorable-with-no-water-and-energy/ (describing the lack of action taken by the United States when Hurricane Fiona struck Puerto Rico); see also supra notes 1­3, 5­8. Thus, fundamental rights, like voting for president, do not apply to Puerto Ricans.

[21] U.S. Const. art. VII.

[22] U.S. Const. art. IV, § 3, cl. 2.

[23] Territories exist in two forms: a general territory and a commonwealth territory; Puerto Rico is a commonwealth territory. Territories and commonwealth are two similar but distinct terms. See generally Ani Kington, supra note 13; Commonwealths have a “slightly more developed relationship to the U.S. than a ‘territory’ does.” Id. Both the terms “commonwealth” and “territory” are used interchangeably to describe Puerto Rico’s status. Territories of both forms––despite being part of the United States––are not represented in Congress in the same manner states are and “do not have the same rights as states.” Id. The federal government has mounted “significant opposition” against granting territories or commonwealths statehood. Id.

[24] BRIA 17 4 c Puerto Rico: Commonwealth, Statehood, or Independence?, Const. Rts. Found.,

https://www.crf-usa.org/bill-of-rights-in-action/bria-17-4-c-puerto-rico-commonwealth-statehood-or-independence (last visited Nov. 20, 2023).

[25] History.com Editors, supra note 10.

[26] P.R. Const. art. IX, § 10; see H.R.J. Res. 430, 81st Cong. (1952) (enacted).