As a financial supporter of the 100 Club, I tried as best I could to read with an open mind Sunday’s article (Herald, Nov. 2) about residents’ anger with the Durango Police Department after violence that erupted at the hands of ICE agents. I could not believe that the DPD, which I see supporting us at Black Lives Matter protests and No Kings marches, would stand idly by while ICE agents committed violence against protesters.
I read that DPD tried to bring pizza to the family while they were wrongly imprisoned in Durango. I wanted to remain assured of my trust in the DPD. However, Police Chief Current blamed protesters for the violence and DPD did nothing (nothing!) to stop it once they witnessed protesters being fired upon with rubber bullets and pepper sprayed at point-blank range. The DPD not intervening when ICE agents used excessive force has undermined my faith in them.
I am a 66-year-old retiree who currently does not trust her local police department. Shame on you, DPD. You pass the buck by saying you cannot interfere with federal officers. What excuses were given by the officers who stood by as a fellow officer suffocated George Floyd? How about when police stood by for 77 minutes, hearing the lone gunman kill 19 school children in Uvalde, Texas? Perhaps the DPD’s commitment to “building trust and protecting the vulnerable” is nothing but lip service and empty talk.
Mary Oswald
Durango
