Deadly Force Probes

At a point when diminished tax revenues require cuts in a number of county services, isn’t it about time to reduce the district attorney’s budget by whatever amount is set aside to conduct these charades that pass for investigations into the use of deadly force by law enforcement agencies? The latest such investigation took eight months to complete and everyone in San Diego County knew the outcome before the investigation began: Two sheriff’s deputies were legally justified in shooting a 60-year-old, 133-pound man waving a shovel.

Then we watched the spectacle of Sheriff Jim Roache at a news conference lamely trying to justify the actions of his deputies. Less than lethal alternatives (Mace, canine unit) were an hour away, he said. What was the hurry? One deputy had already burned an hour waiting for his backup to arrive. Was the shooting victim entitled to only a one-hour grace period? Couldn’t the deputy have requested one or more of these alternatives at the same time he requested a backup? Somebody cut the district attorney’s budget and tell him there’s no need to play this game any more.

WILLIAM T. SHANNON

Carlsbad