Jury rules against ex-Haitian mayor, orders $15M in damages

By MARK PRATT
Associated Press

A federal jury has ruled in favor of three men who said in a lawsuit that the former mayor of their small town in Haiti subjected them or their relatives to a campaign of political persecution that included a killing, attempted killings and torture. The jury in U.S. District Court in Boston on Tuesday also awarded the plaintiffs more than $15 million in compensatory and punitive damages. Jean Morose Viliena, a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. who now lives in Massachusetts, was sued in 2017 by three Haitian citizens who say they or their relatives were persecuted by him and his political allies. The lawsuit was filed under a U.S. law. The former mayor declined comment.