Letter: Pasco report justifying Zambrano-Montes shooting an insult to Tri-City residents
The situation at the Pasco Police Department continues to spiral out of control. They hired the Police Policy Studies Council to justify killing Antonio Zambrano-Montes, representing the latest insult to the sensibilities of Tri-City residents.
The group was established in 2001 by former training cadre of Smith & Wesson Academy, according to its website. They include the group’s executive director, Thomas Aveni, who wrote the report.
The group not only specializes in training police to use all forms of weaponry, but their Facebook page shows a particular prejudice towards Hispanics and other minorities.
In a year’s time, seven out of 70 Pasco police were involved in killing someone. What additional training did these seven receive before they were turned back out onto the streets of Pasco?
Once the national spotlight was shined on the Pasco Police Department, the killing stopped. But with the same leadership — leadership that would hire a group founded by Smith & Wesson trainers to justify a shooting by officers — what is going to happen when that light dims?
Lillian “Randy” Slovic
Richland
This story was originally published October 5, 2015 at 9:07 PM with the headline "Letter: Pasco report justifying Zambrano-Montes shooting an insult to Tri-City residents."