To the editor:

This notion that the police are too aggressive when confronting a possible suspect is overblown. I have had breakdowns on the roads at times, and when the officer arrived and told me to get back in my car, I just did what I was told. I realized he had my safety in mind, and his own safety, as passing cars whizzed by.

I did not stand in the road and argue with him. One the other hand, I had nothing to hide. No drugs, no knives or a gun. This shooting of suspects would come to an end in most cases if the person just did what the officer told them to do. Stay in the car, keep your hands on the steering wheel or where I can see them, or get out of the car and spread so I can check for weapons, or get on the ground and spread or drop the gun.

These don’t seem to be very complicated directions. The only reason not to follow these simple directions is because something is suspicious. The person might have an open warrant, has drugs on the person or in the vehicle, the vehicle is stolen, the person is drunk or high on some type of narcotic, has a weapon or weapons on his or her person or just committed a major crime earlier.

When confronted, you don’t raise your hands above your head, walk around and put your hands into open window of the vehicle. How would a police officer know what you’re going to grab — maybe a pistol? That is what this last shooting looked like by this female officer. Why have your hands in the air and then reach into the vehicle? What would you do? 

Without the police, we would not have a country.

James Correia

210 Furey Ave.

Tiverton