USE POLICE ERT TO BUST GROW-OPS

Editor, The News:

When I first heard the news of four slain officers in Alberta, I felt sick
to my stomach that someone out there had the nerve to kill our police officers.

These same officers who would have given their lives if James Roszko was
ever in danger and needed police protection from another evil person.

Personally, I don't think there is anybody more evil and sick out there
than this man. I sympathize with all police officers across the country,
whether they be our local police officers or RCMP officers. They work
extremely hard with little or no support from the justice system.

I had recently read an article on a grow-operation in Mission, in which
charges were thrown out because the police officers didn't give the
marijuana growers enough time to come to the door.

Justice Joyce was probably under that impression that it was "ma" and "pa"
grow operation whose principles are probably in their mid-60s and need time
to come to the door so their friendly police officers can come in, arrest
them and dismantle the grow operation.

Justice Joyce needs to realize these are very dangerous criminals who are
equipped to maim and kill anyone on any given day, including our police
officers.

Make no mistake that where there are drugs, there is violence, guns and
organized crime. There is also a large quantity of cash at stake, along
with home invasions.

In the Mission case, the officers did the right thing and did what they had
to go home at the end of the night to their families and loved ones. When a
bad guy who is growing marijuana hears police cars outside his residence
and sees men in uniform at his door, imagine what is going on inside the
residence.

They are not coming to the door. They are going for their guns and they are
running to their hidden stash of weapons to protect their crop. I beg all
judges out there with mentality similar to that of Justice Joyce's to
protect society and give the power back to police officers to fight this
deadly war on drugs.

And Justice Joyce should go on a ride-along with some of our local police
officers and see what it takes from the time a grow operation call is
called in until it ends up in her court room.

I bet it would be an enlightening experience for her. Please don't let our
police officers die in vain.

Please don't give criminals an edge over our protectors of society.

From now on I think that emergency response teams should be assigned to
all grow-ops and that all grow-ops should be taken down by them, since they
are probably better equipped to deal with high-powered arsenal that some of
these criminals possess.

Sharon Johal, Abbotsford