The Ka'Sandra Wade case deserves investigation

Few people deserve as much praise when they perform well as the po1ice, and a few deserve as much criticism when they don't. And there are few who are as obnoxiously defensive when they are criticized. See the Jan. 11 editorial, "Enemies List: A Police Chief Thinks His Job Is to Punish Reporters."

The police are ready with one excuse or another whenever they behave questionably. How often have we heard about the mysterious "bulge" under the coat as justification for stopping and pummeling someone? Admittedly, "probable cause" and "reasonable suspicion" are notions incapable of objective measurement. But in some instances it's clear that further police investigation is warranted. The demise of Ka'Sandra Wade offers such a case.

When the police went to Ka'Sandra's house to look into her 911 call for assistance, common sense screams out that, at the very least, they should have asked the man who came to the window to have Ka'Sandra come to that window. Absent such an appearance by Ka'Sandra, immediate further police action was surely warranted. After all, a person's physical safety was patently in question here.

MARVIN M. WITOFSKY
Mt. Lebanon