MEL VIOLATION.

Narrative

PRIOR TO DEPARTING JFK ENRTE TO SJU; A MAINT TECHNICIAN ADVISED THE CAPT AND I THAT HE HAD DISCOVERED A DAMAGED CABLE IN THE R MAIN GEAR WHEEL WELL; WHICH DISABLED THE GEAR DOWN-LOCK INDICATOR ATOP THE WINGS. HE PLACARDED THAT ITEM. ALL REMAINING GEAR INDICATING SYS WERE FUNCTIONAL AND WE RETAINED THE NECESSARY REDUNDANCY. UPON ARR IN SJU; WE ADVISED MAINT OF AN ANOMALOUS INDICATION IN ONE OF OUR HYD SYS. IT WAS SUBSEQUENTLY PLACARDED. DURING THE INVESTIGATION OF THE HYD SYS; MAINT OPENED THE R MAIN GEAR DOOR. WHILE THE DOOR WAS OPEN; WE NOTED THE GEAR DOOR INDICATOR ON THE FORWARD INST PANEL INDICATED THE DOOR WAS INDEED OPEN; HOWEVER; THE OVERHEAD GEAR INDICATING PANEL FAILED TO INDICATE THE POS OF THE GEAR DOOR. AFTER FURTHER INVESTIGATION; MAINT ADVISED US THE PROB WAS THE FAILURE OF THE OVERHEAD R GEAR DOOR INDICATOR. THEY ALSO NOTED THAT THEY WOULD PLACARD THE ITEM. WE WERE SATISFIED THAT; EVEN THOUGH THE GEAR DOOR ON THE OVERHEAD PANEL WAS TO BE PLACARDED; WE STILL RETAINED REDUNDANT GEAR INDICATING SYS BECAUSE THE GEAR INDICATORS ON BOTH THE OVERHEAD AND FORWARD PANELS FUNCTIONED NORMALLY. WE DISCOVERED THIS MORNING THAT MAINT HAD ACTUALLY PLACARDED THE ENTIRE OVERHEAD PANEL AND THUS WE VIOLATED THE MEL; HAVING FLOWN THE ACFT WITH TECHNICALLY A SINGLE GEAR INDICATING SYS. I BELIEVE OUR SHORT GND TIME IN SJU; THE FAILURE OF OUR MAINT COMPUTER TO HIGHLIGHT THE INCOMPATIBLE PLACARDS; THE LATE ARR OF OUR CABIN CREW (5 MIN BEFORE SCHEDULED DEP); 22 DEPARTEES WHO CAUSED A GOOD DEAL OF CONFUSION PRIOR TO OUR DEP AND A STRING OF MAINT PROBS ALL CONTRIBUTED TO THIS INCIDENT. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 266887: THE LNDG GEAR INDICATING PANELS; MEL 32-1; AND THE VISUAL DOWN-LOCKS; MEL 32-2; WERE BOTH PLACARDED INOP. ONE OR THE OTHER MAY BE INOP; BUT NOT BOTH. NEITHER ITEM REQUIRES DISPATCHER CONCURRENCE. THE DISCREPANCY WAS NOT DISCOVERED UNTIL THE FIRST FLT OF THE NEXT DAY; IN WHICH THE FLT WAS DELAYED OVER 5 HRS RESTORING THE LNDG GEAR INDICATING PANELS. NOTE: HAD THIS BEEN A DISPATCHER CONCURRENCE ITEM; BOTH PLACARDS NEVER WOULD HAVE BEEN APPROVED.