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Re: “There are no ‘bad apple’ police officers,” Feb. 15 Colorado Voices column.
I was shocked when I read the headline of Joel Hughes’ column. But as I read it, I was reminded of the saying that “The scandal isn’t the illegal behavior, the scandal is what’s legal.” Well, maybe not technically legal, but actions which “good cops” do daily with the full support of their colleagues, their supervisors, and their allies in the district attorneys’ offices.
These “good apple” officers can be observed daily in local courts practicing the traditional art of “testilying.” Because officers are just trying to convict guilty criminals who might otherwise get off on a technicality, we the public give them our full support. After all, the bad guy may not have committed the exact crime he stands accused of, but he is still a criminal and certainly guilty of other, yet-uncharged crimes. No real harm done. The cops are the good guys. As Hughes termed it, “tinkering.” Just doing what they have to do to make the system work.
No, the scandal is not the “bad apples,” it is the rotten barrel they are a part of.
Bruce Conant,Denver
This letter was published in the Feb. 22 edition.Joel Hughes presents an objective, well-reasoned analysis of temptations inherent in police-community encounters. He is correct that “race bias does play a part” (in some encounters). But if we put our minds to it, race bias can become a diminishing factor. In Colorado, the most common type incident in which race bias is present or alleged involves non-black officers patrolling black neighborhoods — a necessity when black officers are in short supply.
This is a solvable problem. Colorado’s lawmakers should fund a study that would reveal two things: which jurisdictions in the country have been most successful in recruiting black law enforcement officers; and how they did it. We could then adopt those successful models in Colorado.
Having black officers police black neighborhoods will not eliminate the inherent tension in police-community encounters, but it will simplify and lessen the problems.
Ray Harlan,Aurora
This letter was published in the Feb. 22 edition.
