POLICE OVERKILL?

Thursday's front page photo, showing six heavily armed police officers
serving a warrant on a suspected marijuana grow house, reeks of
tabloid sensationalism. Why all the heavily artillery? Were the police
anticipating the plants to shoot back?

While I don't want to minimize the inherent risk associated with any
police activity, this scene strikes me as a calculated case of
overkill. If these officers were anticipating a confrontation, why
bring a Times-Herald photographer along to get a close-up? Was Chris
Riley armed too?

Paul Armentano

Vallejo