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Brown-Waite right to be upset about Couey friends

Why criticize U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite in her efforts to find answers in the Jessica Lunsford case? The congresswoman is not alone when it comes to not understanding why the three adults living with Couey cannot be charged in this case. Hopefully, once Couey has his day in court these questions will be answered.

In the meantime, if Greg Hamilton feels such distaste for Bill O'Reilly and his show, I suggest he stop watching and reporting on it. I don't believe people feel there is a conspiracy in the Lunsford case. People are just frustrated with the situation.

However, I do believe communication between government agencies needs improvement. The public recently became aware of a perfect example of lack of communication when it was reported the government was giving Viagra to sex offenders and the taxpayers were paying for it. Talk about your oxymoron!

Residents in Hernando County are fortunate with our law enforcement agencies. They are working hard to protect us and at the same time keep the citizens informed. It would be most helpful if your paper would work closely with local law enforcement and report awareness information regarding sexual offenders rather than waste a third of a page commenting on the O'Reilly/Brad King/Brown-Waite saga.

Try commenting on something positive. For instance, Brown-Waite along with other members of Congress has introduced legislation for tougher laws against sexual offenders nationwide. Try commenting on supporting this proposed legislation. Try contacting the School Board and ask if it considers the location of a sexual offender's residence before establishing a bus stop.

Why not write a column explaining to parents the importance of having an adult present at their child's bus stop? Why not encourage civic groups, church groups and homeowner associations to contact the Sheriff's Office and have a representative speak at their meeting about the sexual offender awareness programs? This is valuable information that could end up saving a child's life.

Please consider these suggestions when writing your next opinion column.

Sheriff's action, not legislators', was off base in Lunsford case

Let the halls of the nation's capitol ring any time one of our children are murdered, let members of Congress decry the violence put upon the most sacred of humanity.

The defenseless child deserves the attention of every member of Congress, every state legislator and every other elected official who in any way can affect the outcome of the person or persons responsible for harming a child. Let the media rage with indignities and incite the public and elected officials to lawful action.

Bill O'Reilly and other national media outlets have focused on the murder of Jessica Lunsford. The attention is productive and positive. The national and state attention has created state legislation, now the law of Florida, and new local processes, and even federal legislation is on the horizon for sexual predators. This is good; and, credit is due state Sen. Nancy Argenziano and state Rep. Charlie Dean for carrying this legislative torch to the finish line and to U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite.

However, criticisms levied against Brown-Waite by the Citrus Times and Sheriff Jeff Dawsy are disgusting examples of the need to criticize those who join with an angry public because three actors in the murder of a child are going free.

The parallel drawn by the Times that Brown-Waite is somehow in the mud with Couey is false, capricious and utterly devoid of rational thought. Our representative decries the violence perpetrated on Jessica Lunsford and vicariously to every family in our nation. Our representative challenges the decision made by local officials and she is automatically condemned, on what basis? By accepting the argument of the very people she criticizes? Does the Times expect those folks to be objective? Brown-Waite did in fact have conversations with Paul Perez, the U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Florida, and his office.

Sheriff Jeff Dawsy blew it! The facts as they relate to the Florida statutes, the law: On March 19, Dorothy Dixon, Madie Secord and Matthew Dittrich were arrested by deputies of the Citrus County Sheriff's Office. Why? It was amateur hour at the Sheriff's Office. I believe because of external pressures from the very same national press he now decries as missing the boat.

Dawsy could have waited to make the arrest and the state attorney would have had two years to make a misdemeanor case against the defendants or four years or more to make a felony case against the defendants before the statute of limitations expired (Florida Statute 775.15). Under the law, when the three were arrested, speedy trial (Florida Rules of Crime Procedure 3.91) immediately began to run and the longer time periods under the statute of limitations no longer applied. Specifically, because the sheriff made an arrest, the state of Florida then only had 90 days to bring the defendants to trial for a misdemeanor or the state is forever barred from prosecuting a misdemeanor charge.

It also means that the state has only 175 days to bring the defendants to trial for a felony or the state is forever barred from prosecuting them for a felony; that date is Sept. 10.

Dawsy blew it! He could have very easily taken what he had to Brad King or Rich Buxman at the prosecutor's office and discussed the case and received a legal opinion before an arrest was made. If it was determined at that point additional investigation was needed to make a case, further investigation could have been done to make a case against the three people at issue.

If our sheriff, who claims folks are honored to be arrested by him, had paid attention to the simple details - you know, the laws of Florida - maybe the outcome would/could have been a little different.

The Times' hook, line and sinker approach from the sheriff's tales of fantasy pales in comparison to the brave legislators who took issue with the death of a child and are braving the criticism of an uninformed local newspaper. God bless Ginny Brown-Waite and Bill O'Reilly and all of those who stand fast and ready to defend the memory of a child whose life was taken and desire to hold all of the actors for her murder accountable.

O'Reilly's positive contributions belie attacks on his character

Critiques of sheriff uninformed and absurd, Greg Hamilton column, June 22 Citrus Times.

It seems that rather than taking constructive criticism (re: the Jessica Lunsford case) as a tool to examine all the facts, Mr. Hamilton is more concerned with jumping on the bandwagon of the evil right-wing conspiracy theory.

He blasts Bill O'Reilly, who is upset that Couey's three housemates living in that paper-thin trailer never heard or saw a thing and bought Couey a bus ticket to Georgia and were not charged with anything. He further states no one with any sense takes O'Reilly seriously.

I could fill this page with the good things Bill O'Reilly's done, but I'll just list one for now. He stopped the Red Cross from diverting funds for the 9/11 families and made sure it went where it belonged.

I guess I'm one of those "no sense" people who have made The Factor one of the most successful shows in the history of cable TV.

With 32 years of law enforcement experience, I'm certainly not one to easily criticize police lightly, as I know firsthand how difficult it is.

[Last modified June 29, 2005, 01:18:19]