Shortly thereafter the 10% of the cost required to be picked up by the mayor's office to continue the program was denied and the learning center stocked with computers and learning materials was boarded-up.
It was a warm autumn day in the Gypsy community at Alpina in central Romania Mures county when 54-year-old N.M stepped outside to sweep her walk. She was unaware of the police cars that had just driven into the community to investigate an accusation of assault. Within seconds N. M. was on the floor in agony, brought down by a policeman's rubber bullet.
By the time the dust cleared 22 people had been brought down by rubber bullets and another 15 physically abused. Blame was quickly cast on the Gypsies coming from as high up as one local senator who informed the press that the police "defended themselves in order to avoid being seriously injured or even lynched."
Istvan Haller of the Romanian Human Right organization Pro Europa League contends that prosecution of Roma is three times more likely while when Roma are the victim prosecution is often avoided. Documented in Pro Europa Leaguea's Case Study on Racial Discrimination in Mures County, Romania is two similar murder cases handled by the same judge that occurred within ten days of one another. In the first case one person died in the hospital yet not from his injuries. The three Roma perpetrators were sentenced to terms between twelve and sixteen years. In the second case the Romanian murderers of three Roma received sentencing between three and five 5 years.
Almost two years since Marusha was shot from behind by a police officer and the investigation has been officially closed. The name of the officer who pulled the trigger and why, was never revealed. In order to save her life the doctors were forced to remove three-quarters of her liver that has since left the teenager a weakened, virtual old woman. She has since dropped out of school and now lives a quiet, uneventful life in the single room home by the railroad tracks with her elderly grandmother. No one comes around, journalist never took an interest in the story; after all it was a just a Gypsy who was shot - she wasn's the shooter.