An Alternative to a Difficult Verdict

* Re Your Oct. 24 article (“A Hard Sentence to Say”) about a freak shooting that fatally wounded a man’s neighbor.

Certainly, when a gun is fired and the shot results in a fatality, the one who has caused the death should be expected to pay a severe penalty, commensurate with the deed.

In the case of the grievous but accidental taking of a life, however, perhaps there is a way to order a penalty designed toward the saving of other lives, rather than to destroy one that before the accident had been exemplary, that of Eleuterio Ocampo.

The heartbroken mother of Marco Antonio Fuentes, young innocent victim of a ricocheted warning shot meant to scare off lemon-throwing children in 1996, might agree that if the taking of her son’s life could somehow lead to the salvaging of neglected young men’s lives as a result, her great pain may be eased.

Rather than contribute to the sad futility of this accident, perhaps Judge David O. Carter might elect to reconsider his verdict and alter Ocampo’s two-year prison sentence to that of requiring the remainder of his term be devoted to mentoring wayward, disadvantaged youth and starting them on the right track toward making the most of their lives.

In lieu of prison time, this too could teach a vivid lesson and a far more productive one, as well as sparing further pain to all involved.

CAROL G. BENEDICKTUS

San Clemente