The Film:

Four years after Albert's death, his killer is still on the run. The US Embassy claims there is an active warrant out for the killer's arrest and are in constant communication with Honduran authorities to bring this case to justice, however when Albert's son, Paul Lima, flies to Honduras he is shocked to learn that there is no warrant for the killer's arrest, and that his family has been lied to by the US government to prevent them from taking matters into their own hands. Upon realizing that no American agency is going to right this injustice, Paul uses the only weapon he can to pressure Honduran authorities to act- a camera.

Two years of interviewing Honduran officials led to the capture of Albert Lima's killer in 2006. The highest ranking Honduran official interviewed is Oscar Alvarez, the Minister of Security and second in command of Honduras, who explains that it is the awareness that the documentary brought that led to the creation of a new Honduran Task Force focused solely on American homicide cases. Albert Lima's case is the first that the Task Force solves, as the man wanted for Albert Lima's murder, Oral Coleman, is captured on film and jailed.

One year later, Paul Lima receives a call from the US Embassy in Honduras notifying him that Oral Coleman has been acquitted of all charges and is now a free man. The inability to attain justice using legal means now fully realized brings the film back full tilt to its universal question: When legal means fail, how do those of us left behind move forward? What is justice for us?

The Politics:

The main issue at hand is that, as of now, U.S. citizens really are on their own when they travel internationally. However, U.S. Free Trade initiatives such as the Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA-DR, give incentives to U.S. business persons who agree to conduct business in Central American countries included in the agreement, Honduras being one of them. Currently, there are no policies in place that protect the U.S. citizen or their interests should he or she be killed in a foreign country, yet the following staggering statistic remains and is on the rise as Anti-American sentiment rises internationally:

“Over 6000 Americans are killed overseas each year. Only 2% of these cases are ever solved.” - U.S. State Department

One man interviewed in the film is a respected Honduran journalist and college professor. He explained that in Honduras it is cheaper to have an American killed than to take them to court and risk losing the case. The average cost to have an American murdered in Honduras is $500US. The man adds that most Honduran citizens are aware that given the current policy, it is rare that any serious action is taken when an American is murdered, because the Embassy can’t get involved and because the Honduran authorities lack the resources to investigate these cases. The end result is that these cases go unresolved and forgotten, and the killers get away - murdering with impunity.

In the documentary, our primary characters speak of the horrors they encountered in dealing with the U.S. Embassy in Honduras from the point when they were first notified that their husband and father, Albert Lima, was beaten and abducted, to four years after the discovery of his dead body- the case still unsolved, the murderer still running free, and no sign of justice on the horizon. The story follows Albert Lima’s son- Paul Lima as he travels to Honduras to investigate his father’s case himself, which leads to the capture of his father’s killer and ignites a governmental change in how the country of Honduras now handles cases in which an American is abducted or killed.

Honduras has really set the precedent for what other countries engaging in a free trade agreement with the U.S. should be expected to do as part of the agreement. We are proud to boast that in 2004 as a result of our filming, Honduras created a Task Force that works directly with the U.S. Embassy to solve cases where an American was abducted or killed in Honduras. It has been essential in closing more than 20 cases since its inception, Albert Lima’s case being the first case solved. This Task Force is the first of its kind and works directly with the U.S. Embassy to investigate, prosecute, and close cases involving American citizens.

According to the Institute for International Economics, the U.S. currently has free trade agreements with more than 20 countries and is considering opening free trade negotiations with at least seven others. There is no mention in any of these agreements regarding the issue of protecting the American citizen who decides to take the incentives and do international business in these countries. Conversely, should a foreign national from any of these countries be killed in the U.S., their case would be handled no differently than if the foreign national was an American. This is the respect the United States shows foreign nationals, and it is the respect the U.S. should demand in return from countries with which we hold free trade agreements.