My pal Hemp Ed writes to Rep. Baird about unneeded COP grants for tiny Pe Ell, Washington
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Letter to US Congressman Brian Baird from Ed in Pe Ell
Rep. Baird
I live in small town in your district. Our towns elected officials are making a major mistake of robbing the treasury with a request of COPS money. We have no crime! I still leave my house unlock, I walk the streets at night without protection, and we have no fear form my neighbors or any criminal element.
Presently, Pe Ell town marshal is paid for 20 hours a week. He doesn’t live anywhere close to our community, and the town furnishes him a car, and picks up all his travel expenses to and from his home. Last year, the town spent over $60,000 for marshaling. The town marshal feels he needs more help in protecting us, so he applied for a COPS grant, which is unwarranted and unnecessary, and it is my belief is only self-aggrandizing.
I have lived in this community all my life, graduating from PLS in 1964. I will tell you in all honesty, the worst problems in this community have been caused by the the police themselves. The last time Pe Ell received COPS program money, the Mayor was re-called, mostly because of the problems with the local marshal and his Barny Fife assistants.
Pe Ell does not need a Police Force. The Lewis Co. Sheriff’s office does a fine job, give a grant to them. I was glad to see this program only has one billion, and there has been over eight billion dollars requested from the program all ready. I am sure the Sheriff could put it to good use, but not the Pe Ell Marshals office.
How do I see the grant proposal submitted by the marshall of Pe Ell? I would like to read the lies he submitted warranting COPS funding for this community.
You and I both know, crime in related to the economy. Send the money to the cities. We here in Pe Ell, do not need Federal Money to solve a nonexistent problem.
Last, but not least: If the COPS grant program funds Pe Ell Policing, the citizens of this community will vote to become unincorporated. You can “make book” on that.
Please reply; Ed Saukkooja – citizen