Pubdate: Fri, 09 Feb 2007
Source: News Leader, The (VA)
Copyright: 2007 News Leader
Contact: http://www.newsleader.com/customerservice/contact.html
Website: http://www.newsleader.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1985
Author: Adam Haney

LAW ENFORCEMENT IS INEPT

Simple incompetence is sometimes excusable, but blatant disregard for 
one's responsibilities is never acceptable. In their quest to appease 
state and federal legislators who throw money at the "war on drugs," 
Greene County Prosecutor Darrell Moore and the Springfield police 
continue to apprehend minors for consuming or simply possessing 
alcohol, while rape, theft, motor vehicle theft, robbery and 
aggravated assault all increase in our county.

In Springfield alone, crimes such as homicide, rape, aggravated 
assault and robbery increased 12.2 percent. But, who really cares? 
Isn't it much more important to fill the state coffers from ticketing 
minors for drinking and making politicians appear "tough on crime" so 
they can get an easy re-election? Wrong.

Of course, the police will surely blame drugs as the culprit for all 
these problems. Please, the "war on drugs" is simply a convenient and 
ever-ready excuse for administrations on the city, state and federal 
levels to use when confronted with tough questions. The truly insipid 
problem we have in our city is not crime, it's that law enforcement 
only focuses on what benefits them politically and financially.

Adam Haney, Springfield
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom