MAILBAG - Sept. 21, 2006

Chief’s letter missed mark of fairness

Police Chief Kenneth Small’s letter to the community, which was published in last week’s Independent, surprised me. I was surprised that I initially found his plea for patience and reason to be fair and balanced. I was then shocked to reach the end of his letter and find there listed the alleged wrongs of Ashley MacDonald, allegations that no doubt were lifted from the report that was written by the officers involved; allegations that would have had to be proven in court had the District Attorney been given the opportunity to decide whether to file charges against MacDonald; allegations MacDonald will never be able to answer.

I regret that Small has received hate mail, but certainly he knows that not all of us in the community hate his department. And I appreciated learning about Huntington Beach’s only homicide this year. I didn’t know about that. And I might be willing to offer the benefit of the doubt to his officers because they knew this statistic before they met MacDonald in the park. But my husband says I’m wrong. MacDonald was not the murderer of that statistic. And it is fair for this community to have a deeply emotional reaction in light of the current circumstances: a young woman is dead, 17 shots were fired, and somewhere between one and three peace officers panicked. Not in the inner city, in our city. It is more than “sad” as Small stated; it is appalling.

Certainly we know this investigation will take time. In the meantime, reasonable and impassioned questions will be asked, and it may fall to Small to answer them. But if he wishes to be met with fairness, he must offer the same. His plea for fairness followed by allegations that may or may not be true, of a victim who cannot answer his, is another example of the abuse of power (and discretion) by city employees that some of us are concerned about.

His plea was a swing and a miss. He had an opportunity to appeal to the community for peace, but then he joined the fight.

ALYSON BUDDE

Huntington Beach

Independent panel should review killing

It is my opinion that an independent board, equally staffed by civilian and law enforcement personal but overseen by two or three judges or lawyers, investigate any deaths as a result of a police shooting. This would ensure impartiality and legality of findings.

ROBERT JENSEN

Lake Forest

Senior center is in such a good spot

The only reason I am opposed to building a new senior center in Central Park is because I live near the existing senior center and I know what an ideal location it is in.

First off, the current center is just a short, three-block walk from the ocean. While I doubt that many seniors surf, I don’t think anyone is too old to enjoy watching the waves or relaxing at the beach. Second, the present center is only four blocks from the city pool. Swimming is an excellent form of low-impact exercise and just floating around in the water is fun at any age. Third, and perhaps most important, the center is about a three-quarter mile hike or two-minute drive from downtown, with all its shops, restaurants, people and grand pier. That proximity provides seniors with the opportunity to actively participate in the daily life of our city, instead of essentially being put out to pasture in the park.

Is the current senior center site large enough to accommodate an increasing senior population? An entire city block belongs to the center. Surely with the proper design, that is enough space to meet the needs of our seniors now and well into the future. Will it be expensive to rebuild the center, and include underground parking if that is deemed necessary? Undoubtedly. How will that cost compare to the estimated $23-million price tag for constructing a new center in the park? Who knows? As far as I can tell, no city official has even considered rebuilding the center as an option. I can’t image why they wouldn’t. It’s certainly not a new idea. In the area around the current center there are dozens of big new houses now standing where smaller, old homes recently did.

In this upcoming election I am going to vote no on constructing a new senior center in the park. In the following election I hope to have the chance to vote yes on rebuilding the center at its current location.

That way we will be able to give our seniors something which very few other cities can: a first-class facility with an ocean view!

CHRIS BORG

Huntington Beach