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Letter to the Editor: Police Unions Should Not Come Between Citizens and Police Officers

The Minneapolis police-union president has been trying desperately to get the press to make an issue of George Floyd being a “violent criminal.” The position his argument leads one to believe is that it is the duty of local police to execute justice on the street, to blame the victim. We have a justice system for that. That’s why we have courts and district attorneys.

That brings me to the question, why do we allow police unions? I can see unions to protect the rights of officers, to address that they are fairly paid and the like, but how does the police union have the right to step in between you and me as citizens and residents of this country, and police officers?

Maybe this is the real problem. Maybe we need legislation that defines the rights and authority of police unions and prohibits them from stepping between the public and the police. There is no purpose in police unions doing that, and it could easily be stopped. The rights and powers of police unions could easily be defined and regulated.

Jim Riead

Egg Harbor, Wisconsin