We need confidence in our police force

We need confidence in our police force

My father was a cop for the NYPD. I learned from him the abuse that police officers bear and the danger and stress it causes.

I disagree, however, with the reader who wants Newsday to stop writing of "the wrongs of a few bad apples" ["Cop abuse story rouses passions," Letters, Dec. 15]. My own encounters with the police have been nothing but polite and helpful.

The wrongdoing of a few can contaminate the public’s view of the whole institution. The few must be accountable, and airing wrongs promotes accountability.

Our confidence in our police is indeed essential to their safety, much less their efficacy.  

— Hank Cierski, Port Jefferson Station

A reader compared the one-year sentence of a police officer who assaulted a woman with the sentence that she believes actor Jussie Smollett will receive.

Smollett chose to go to trial after costing the people of Chicago hundreds of police hours in his failed publicity stunt. The cost of the trial and previous investigation probably is north of about $200,000.

The officer received a fairly light sentence because he chose to plead guilty. People who admit guilt get much lighter sentences than those convicted at trial.

— Charles Blatt, Levittown

The writer retired as a sergeant in the NYPD.

I was horrified that a Suffolk County police officer was able to abuse a prisoner inside a precinct, and his partner was never punished for breaking rules meant to protect her ["A Suffolk officer sexually abused a prisoner," News, Dec. 12].

I am a woman born and raised in Suffolk, and this makes it hard for me to believe I can trust the police with my safety. I want all of my neighbors to have access to protection under the law.

We pay police to maintain law and order. I feel we deserve civil servants who follow every rule and procedure, especially ones that were created to ensure our safety. I think that Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone needs to provide a step-by-step plan for what he will do to rectify the situation and ensure that officers and the Internal Affairs Bureau are held accountable when abuses like this arise in the future.

— Cassandra Klewicki, Commack

Debt? Let’s try living within our means

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer referred to the raising of the debt ceiling as responsible government at work ["Senate deal raises debt cap by $2.5T," News, Dec. 15].

If we had a responsible government, we would live within our means and not need a debt ceiling. How about living as responsible people who don’t just keep spending? How about figuring out how to pay down our more than $28 trillion dollar debt?

I would be afraid to see "irresponsible" government.

— Joseph Carracino, Levittown

GOP should force Cuomo to dish $18M

Kudos to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics for ordering former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to pay back the $5 million in book profits ["Cuomo told to return $5M from book deal," News, Dec. 15]. But I believe that we as a society have to go one step further.

Cuomo still has $18 million of possible "cash in play" in his campaign war chest just waiting to be harvested by the eventual Democratic gubernatorial candidate.

Just by coincidence, Cuomo has racked up $23 million in legal fees that the taxpayers are on the hook for. Simple math says 5 million plus 18 million covers that tab. Why should taxpayers pay for Cuomo’s malfeasance and ethics violations?

Why isn’t the state Republican Party chairman, Nick Langworthy, aggressively seeking a way to make this happen? Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley), who is putting his six-election winning streak on the line in running for governor, and Langworthy are passing up a golden opportunity to help pull off this upset.

Given that he refuses to invoke former President Donald Trump’s 2014 idea of foregoing primaries, I’m not impressed with Langworthy’s "leadership."

How does he not fight to give his candidate every conceivable advantage and turn New York red during this watershed election?

— Eugene R. Dunn, Medford

Punish those who make assault threats

Those making school bomb and shooting threats must be punished ["Cops add school security over online threat," News, Dec. 17]. Whether real or fake, any punk convicted of making such threats — on social media, phone or in person — should get life in prison with no chance of parole.

When is this country going to stop being wimpy  regarding criminal punishment?

— Thomas Sarc, Central Islip