I am a Norwalk resident of 40 years, Black and a retired Philadelphia homicide detective, having taken the oath of office in September 1961. It is with great pride that I am patriarch of an entire family in law enforcement. My eldest son, a Judge, my middle son, serving a total of 33 years in Local, State and Federal law enforcement agencies, retiring after 28 years as an FBI Agent, a nephew, who retired as Philadelphia Police Commissioner in 2019, a grandson currently a police officer.
I was disappointed after reading about the treatment by a small group of Norwalk Police Officers directed at Senator Bob Duff for carrying out his role as a legislator in passing the Police Accountability Bill . Although I have never met him I have long been aware of Senator Duff’s work in Norwalk and the 25th District he represents. I also know he has been a staunch advocate for the Norwalk Police Department for years and ask this question.
“Why direct this kind of treatment toward someone who has been a proven benefactor for fulfilling the role he was elected to do, (i.e, voting for what he feels is in the best interest of the entire population he represents and not just one segment)?”
It is unfortunate that the actions of a small number of police officers across the country resulted in injury or death to many who did not deserve to die. This in turn has brought about police reform throughout the nation. This reform is not designed to penalize the 90 percent of officers who diligently perform their jobs correctly, but to minimize the bad conduct by those who make the job difficult for the majority of their colleagues. Regardless of what anyone’s position is on the merits of the bill, we should treat elected officials and everyone else with the same respect we would want to receive.
Gerald Ross, Jr.
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