Editor:
We vote because we want a voice and because we put trust in an elected official to do the will of the people not just a select few.
DA Russell Wasley, has been called a man of action for taking Zachary Sullivan to trial. In an article appearing in the May 24 Cortez Journal, John Hoover states that Mr. Wasley has spoken by his actions that he will continue to protect the community by taking serious violent crimes to trial and putting dangerous criminals in prison where they belong. Really? That is not what I am seeing in his actions. The letter continued to relate Sullivans attempted actions and but for the gun jamming, Sullivan may have killed the officers.
Look at the case (2011, non-election year) involving Termain Yazzi, who attempted to kill his helpless grandmother because she wouldnt lend him her car. Again, but for the gun jamming, Yazzies grandmother would be dead. Too bad this defendant who attempted to commit a violent crime against an elder wasnt treated with equal disdain and action.
Yazzie drew his loaded pistol and pointed it at his grandmother and pulled the trigger. Miraculously, the gun jammed. He took the magazine and reloaded. Again, he took aim and pulled the trigger. Through what must have been divine intervention, the gun jammed a second time, sparing the life of the innocent grandmother. A sibling called 911. After the police subdued Mr. Yazzi with multiple taser strikes, they took a loaded pistol from his hands that contained seven more live rounds.
What did our DA Wasley, the man of action, do with this violent offender? He dismissed the attempted murder charge and rewarded Mr. Yazzie with a generous plea bargain to which the judge sentenced him to a mere three years in prison. Apparently this was not a violent or horrific-enough crime. With good behavior, Yazzie will likely be out in 1.5 years. Does this instill trust in an elected official? Does this DA represent all of the people or just the criminal sector?
Margaret Kirk
Mancos
Via CortezJournal.com