‘Castle doctrine’ isn’t the answer to the question of crime
To the Editor,
Does any crime warrant a punishment in excess of what is mandated by law? Does attempting to steal a car – any car – deserve a death sentence from a bullet in the back? And who should get to determine the necessity for using ‘lethal force’? And just, exactly, what kind are we to consider using?
Bobbi Ann Brady is saying that we should be able to use any and all, under a US style “castle doctrine.”
We live in a country where legal ownership of handguns is thankfully heavily restricted, yet any practical implementation of a “castle doctrine” must inevitably lead to repealing this premise. Baseball bats and the emergency retrieval of securely stowed long guns will never suffice for those who advocate this policy.
We have seen a local homeowner tried and convicted of killing a man simply for trying to steal his truck – not something that is a capital offense. This “castle doctrine” in the States routinely sees ‘suspicious’ but innocent persons shot and killed by anxious citizens maintaining that they were defending themselves and their homes.
I agree with Ms. Brady on the state of our judicial system; cringing whenever I read of a shooting perpetrated by yet another criminal out on bail or probation. And the appalling lack of enforcement that almost encourages so much petty crime is something that needs to radically change. But it remains a system that needs repairing, not usurpation.
Almost without exception, every gun crime in this country is committed with an illegally acquired firearm smuggled in from the US. This is where our governments need to focus their efforts: prevention, not merely defense. Now is the time to insist that the Americans work with us on containing their unregulated weapons from leaking northward.
I don’t have all the answers, but I do know it is not to live in a country where anyone, anywhere might decide when they alone get to become judge, jury and executioner.
Bob Sorrell,
Caledonia
An ounce of prevention is needed with phragmites
Dear Editor,
Interested if our municipal weed inspector and municipality have any active campaign controlling/eradicating invasive phragmites.
Leaving it on its own will prove regrettable and extremely costly. Look no further than the efforts undertaken to handle it at Long Point. It already has a strong foothold along our roadways and watercourses as well as on private lands.
William Hart,
Cayuga
