I would like to second everything Mr. Levy from Plainfield said in his letter on this matter and feel compelled to speak my truth on this matter as well.
A 19-year-old part-time police officer rookie who was not fully trained and had been on her job for about six weeks was killed under tragic circumstances that were entirely preventable.
The supervising officer acted in extremely poor judgment, not to say in a reckless manner, in allowing the untrained young police officer behind the wheel of the cruiser when attempting to aid another cruiser in pursuit of a 20-year-old home invader.
In addition, neither the deceased untrained officer nor her supervisor in the cruiser with her were wearing seat belts.
To top this, the pursuit went against the Rutland Police Department’s recently passed policy of no high-speed chases in the city.
I am horrified at the tragic loss of life and the way this was handled by the Rutland Police Department.
The supervising officer needs to be held responsible and policies and traffic laws need to be observed, especially by cops. The hiring age should be 21 and they need to be fully trained before being allowed to operate a cruiser.
I hope the family of the officer killed in this entirely preventable tragedy will find peace and solace.
Gabriele Rebbe
Rutland
