Remember and Vote

A shorter version of this blogpost was published in the letters section of my local paper, The Chronicle of Centralia, Washington on August 5, 2011.  The newspaper titled it, “We Elect the Officials Who Side With Criminals,” which is attention grabbing, but my title is more to my point.  Despite some local references, I thought it might be of use to the greater conservative community.  

          In a recent letter in my local paper a woman asked, “Why do we arrest the victim and let the thieves walk?”  This was in reference to a Centralia man who fired an AK-47 into the ground to frighten suspected thieves.  The answer falls back on all of us—we elect the wrong people.

          The Centralia city manager hires Police Chief Robert Berg.  The manager is hired by and reports to the city council.  If the citizens of the city are not satisfied with the conduct of Chief Berg’s department, they need to tell the city council.  If you live in Centralia and agree with the woman that arresting the victim is crazy, but you don’t know your representatives on the city council, you are part of the problem.  

          We should also remember the names of the officials involved in the case of Ronald Brady, recently convicted of manslaughter for killing a man who was on his property to commit burglary for the second time that day.  The thief returned after dark and when confronted shined a light in the face of Brady.  Frightened and alone, Brady fired at the light.

          After the investigation, Sheriff Steve Mansfield called the killing justifiable, a conclusion that appears to follow a common sense American principle.  If you are confronted by criminals you have a right to defend yourself.  A report of the incident was properly forwarded to the prosecutor’s office.

The current prosecutor, Jonathan Meyer, inherited the case from the previous office holder.  However, Meyer described Brady’s actions as taking the law into his own hands and his claim of self-defense as “not reasonable.”  Prosecutors said Brady never showed remorse or regret and charged him with first-degree murder.        

          In Judge Nelson Hunt, the prosecution appears to have received all they desired.  The judge could have found that no murder had been committed and dismissed that charge or he could have even found that no crime had been committed and dismissed the case.  He did neither.  Indeed, when the jury came back with a guilty verdict for second-degree manslaughter Hunt sentenced Brady to every day in jail that the prosecution requested. 

          Prosecutor Meyer and Judge Nelson Hunt might be our neighbors or even our friends, but if they do not protect our rights and property, they should not hold elected office in our community.  Mansfield and Meyer will be up for reelection in November of 2014.  Judge Hunt will face reelection in November of 2012.  Remember how each has acted and vote.