By Jim Hall
First, it”s of the greatest importance for every citizen of this country, not just the media, to defend our rights to free speech. When printing comments by the readership, the media must not be allowed to edit them, in any way or form, other than grammar or spelling errors. Having said this, Russell Cremer, in a letter published July 17, pointed out that the Lake County Sheriff”s Department turned over the Clear Lake boating accident investigation to the Sacramento Sheriff”s Department. The weakness to this point of view, as to dealing fairly with the matter, is that most of us know that there is a tight bond between fellow law enforcement departments and that has been abused far too many times in our nation”s history. I think the volume of comments over this case shows there is a high degree of mistrust, caused by past cases and how they have been handled, by both the DA”s office and the local law enforcement departments. The power of both these departments must be held to a higher standard to prevent abuse and the need for transparency and openness to the general public”s views and comments. It is very important that they handle their job in a fair and equal manner for all the citizens of any community.
The fairness of a jury of a person”s so-called peers has not always been, nor is it to this day, a reality. The more public knowledge and understanding, through coverage by our media, is a way to see that justice meets our standards, fairly and equally, as in truth, those 12 jurors who are representing all of us in the community. Understand, both sides use the media in boasting their side of any case, and we must remember that the side using our taxpayer funds has far deeper pockets than those using personal funds for their defense. The media should report all news fast and truthfully and be open to comments, if the public feels they have strayed from delivering the truth, under the protection given in the First Amendment. In reporting the news, I would hope that the media would not be impartial when alerting the general public to events that, as members of the local community also, they see the need to sound an alarm. Debating any community issues, openly and publicly in the media is very healthy and needed to ensure all of our personal freedoms that we cherish so dearly. The media is all of our voices, and it needs to be heard truthfully and fairly; loud and clear.
Jim Hall
Clearlake Oaks
