and neither independence nor statehood were on the ballot. 1954 U.S. Capitol shooting incident On March 1, 1954, the Nationalists attacked the House of Representatives. Four Puerto Rican Nationalists: Lolita Lebrón, Rafael Cancel Miranda, Andres Figueroa Cordero, and Irvin Flores Rodríguez, tried to highlight problems in Puerto Rico by attacking the House of Representatives of the United States. They fired automatic pistols from the Ladies' Gallery (a balcony for visitors) in the House of Representatives. The 240 representatives were on the floor during a debate over an immigration bill. They wounded five Congressmen, one seriously, but all survived. All four attackers were tried and convicted in federal court and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. In 1978 and 1979, President Jimmy Carter commuted their sentences to time served, and the four returned to Puerto Rico. Continued repression of independence movement Among the factors which has affected the independence movement in Puerto Rico have been the "COINTELPRO program" and the "Carpetas program." The "COINTELPRO program" was a project conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), under J. Edgar Hoover, aimed at surveying, infiltrating, discrediting, and disrupting certain domestic political organizations, including the independence movement in Puerto Rico. The "Carpetas program" was a massive collection of information gathered by the island's police on so called "political subversives." The police had in its possession thousands of extensive files (carpetas) concerning individuals of all social groups and ages. Approximately 75,000 persons were listed as under political police surveillance. The massive surveillance apparatus was aimed primarily against Puerto Rico's independence movement. Thus many independence supporters moved to the Popular Democratic Party as a means to an end to stop statehood. Notable Nationalist leaders of the 1950s Pedro Albizu Campos - Party president. Alvaro Rivera Walker - Secretary to Albizu Campos. Juan Antonio Corretjer - 1st Secretary General of the Nationalist Party. Francisco Matos Paoli - 2nd Secretary General of the Nationalist Party. Vidal Santiago Díaz - President of the Santurce Municipal Board of the PRNP. Raimundo Díaz Pacheco - Treasurer General of the Nationalist Party, Commander of the Cadets of the Republic and leader of the San Juan Nationalist revolt. Tomás López de Victoria - Sub-Commander of the Cadets of the Republic and leader of the Arecibo Incident. Olga Viscal Garriga - Student leader and spokesperson of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party's branch in Rio Piedras. Blanca Canales - Jayuya Uprising leader.