November 3, 2009

In response to Rogue's Gallery I think the Police News is a great asset to a community and law enforcement enthusiasts of many forms.

However, that being said, I would like to see just a tad more professionalism and appropriate choosing of word selection for the newspaper. I understand this is a form of entertainment, but I also think that today's society is driven by the crime and drama news.

Very rarely do we consider the many social ills that influence and contribute towards criminogenic factors ever present around us. It is the uneducated, mentally ill, underpriviledged that are cast aside by society and turn to a life of crime.

Now don't get me wrong. I am very pro-police and know that the aforementioned situation of criminals is far and few between. There are plenty of bad apples and some down-right evil individuals out there, but some of the mentionings in the newspaper and some of the wording could be more carefully selected.

Those of us related to law enforcement represent a principle of "serve and protect," as such we can't judge or discriminate and should try our best to treat every individual equally.

In a time of economic hardship, particularly in an area that experienced a natural disaster, we should not point out the homeless "found squatting. doing her business."

Ever heard of labeling theory? Who are you or even us as readers to judge? We don't know what that woman has been through.

There is no place in a newspaper for that, lets try and keep the police news related to crime and awareness of violent and dangerous criminals.

Laura 77554