THE NATURE OF CRIME

The very idea that charges are being pursued against Easton's Ronald
Terebesi seems somewhat ludicrous, and news that after the accused
issued a not-guilty plea a deal may be struck to have Terebesi enter
a drug rehabilitation program is not comforting, when seen through
the civil liberties lens.

First, let's get one thing straight: Crimes are crimes and should be
punished as crimes. That a law is ethically and morally valid is
beside the point for law enforcement personnel. It is the job of
legislatures to debate the validity of a law - the prohibition
against marijuana for example - not those police personnel charged
with the task of enforcement.

But in the Terebesi case the drug charges leveled against the accused
serve only to distract the public's eye from the real tragedy - the
overwhelming and unnecessary use of force in the death of 33-year-old
Gonzalo Guizan.

Guizan was unarmed when he reportedly attacked the special task force
members who had invaded Terebesi's home, where he was a guest. The
men in uniform, who may have reacted commensurate with their
training, shot him dead. Only after Guizan was killed was Terebesi
charged with a crime.

And what a crime! Drug paraphernalia was found in his house, as was
some "resin" and a precision scale. So was Guizan's death worth the means?

If, for example, a stash of heroin destined for local schoolyards
county-wide was found, or some kind of drug factory, or even a few
pounds of hashish then, maybe (and only "maybe"), would the force
used in the raid on Terebesi's home have been justified.

Guizan died for nothing more than some resin and a scale, and the
hope that a den of iniquity would be destroyed.

Should Terebesi accept admittance into a six-month rehab program, the
actions of the special task force involved in the raid are given
credence. The accused's not-guilty plea keeps the focus on the
actions of the police, which resulted in a death. Terebesi's crimes,
should he be found guilty by a jury of his peers, pale in comparison;
at no point was he accused of taking a life.

Yes, crimes are crimes and should be treated as such, whichever
direction on the moral compass they point. But actions must be viewed
in context, and the possession of a scale, some paraphernalia and
some resin in no way justifies the force needed to take an unarmed man's life.

If the law does not take such things into consideration when
prosecuting what by comparison are minor crimes, it has failed to be
balanced and blind. And if law enforcement personnel are not trained
to use judgment and discretion when using deadly force, they have
failed to bring professionalism, respect and dignity to the law
enforcement profession.

We wait with bated breath for the real charges - those of unnecessary
force - to be brought.