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