To the editor:

Who are you going to call at 3 a.m. when someone is trying to break into your home? Watching the “I can’t breathe” and “Black lives matter” protestors and marchers it might be easy to forget who local police are. They are your neighbors, little league coaches and members of your church and community. They don’t leave home every day planning to brutalize someone. They leave home with the hope that they will return at the end of shift alive and unharmed. Which, too often they don’t.

It won’t be Al Sharpton that responds to a domestic quarrel at 2 a.m. that could easily get the responding officer killed. It won’t be Eric Holder that has to approach the car on I-26 at midnight with blacked out windows that may be just a speeder or it may be loaded with drugs and someone planning not to be apprehended. It will be your neighbor, the little league coach or the nice young man that volunteers at TROT!

We should focus on the root cause of behaviors that bring people in contact with police. In 71 years I have had two encounters with police. In each case they returned the same courtesy I extended them. I expect if they had arrested me thirty times both our behaviors would have been different.

I am glad to know that if I need to call 911 probably a professional with my safety in mind is going to answer.

Let’s take a minute to say thank you to law enforcement in our community.

Paul Nordan
Columbus