Chief should hear from all in community...

Chief should hear from all in community

New Costa Mesa Police Chief John Hensley’s enthusiasm for getting

to know our community and his accessibility to residents gives him a

positive aura from the start. I would just suggest, as he gathers

community input, that he have a Spanish/English interpreter available

if he is not bilingual.

I’m sure he would like to hear all the perspectives from this

unique community as we welcome our new chief.

MARLYS HARPER

Costa Mesa

Senate hopefuls should be talking about budget

I think [the main issue in the race for the state Senate] should

be restructuring the way the state budget is, major structural reform

to the state budget and also reforming worker’s compensation and

getting rid of the abuse that goes on in that top system.

ANN WATT

Newport Beach

Veches’ punishment doesn’t fit his crime

The case of the former Newport Beach recreation worker is

certainly a poster case of a crime not fitting the potential

punishment (“Former city worker faces up to 300 years,” Wednesday).

Trenton Michael Veches, the former recreation coordinator, was

convicted of sucking or fondling the feet or toes of 20 children. He

has a psychiatric sickness, which should be better addressed by

mental health specialists than by a jailer. On the other hand, given

the six-figure salaries granted to our prison guards by Gov. Gray

Davis, perhaps they should be asked to provide psychologic counseling

as well.

Yes, Veches’ victims might have been surprised and even amused,

but is there any proof that any permanent emotional or physical

damage has been incurred? Is there any justice left when I see Monica

Lewinsky being awarded multimillion-dollar contracts and a TV host

position from doing something far more spectacular, while this fellow

is being threatened with a 300-year multi-life sentence?

The right place for Veches is a mental health facility, not a

prison.

JOHN T. CHIU

Newport Beach

Thanks to all for avoiding special election

Congratulations to Mike Schaefer. I know you are the best person

for this job at this time. Thank you, Costa Mesa City Council, for

finally getting this job done, and now let’s get some city business

taken care of.

Thanks also to Eric Beaver for realizing that the only way to save

our city money was to bow out.

RACHEL PEREZ-HAMILTON

Costa Mesa

No more from Bell on the president

After reading Joseph Bell’s column “Betting against hypocrisy’s

fall” on May 15, I was wondering if we can now count on Bell never to

write another word about George W. Bush. After all, Bell was never

president.

STEVE LEACH

Newport Beach

Headline was too much of a headache

I am calling in regards to your headline, “Defense argues

toe-sucking not sexual” (May 9).

As the mom of a first-grader, I found your front-page headline to

be in very poor taste. Luckily I saw the headline before my daughter

did. You could have used dozens of other headlines for that story.

Please keep little readers in mind when choosing your headlines.

ANNE IMA

Newport Beach