Letter: Why not ID suspects by skin color?

I am at a loss as to why Newsday adheres to a policy that omits pertinent identifying information about crime suspects -- namely, skin color ["Queens firebombings: Elmont case linked?" News, Jan. 3].

You do a serious disservice to your readers when you fail to provide complete descriptive details that would make it easier for them to identify a potentially violent criminal and avoid becoming a victim themselves. You also do a serious disservice to law enforcement officials, since your overly broad descriptions must certainly result in an inundation of calls and tips about people who clearly do not fit the suspect's profile.

The only people you're protecting by withholding this basic and obvious identifying information are the criminals. Whose side are you on?

Donna Gibson, Oceanside