Safety, Service and Security

That’s the motto of the CHP. This letter is written concerning the recent article in the Union Democrat about an attack on a CHP officer (2/5/2010).

An 18-year-old boy driving with his mother doesn’t seem to be the setting for belligerence unless an element of fear was present. I believe a thoughtful question would be – what would cause an element of fear in an 18 year old, driving with his mother?

This boy would hardly have had many previous encounters with the CHP so I believe it is reasonable to assume the element of fear comes from the perception of the public at large. We aren’t told how the encounter began. There seems to have been more to this than was furnished such as, “Was Mom wearing a seatbelt?”

While it’s another stop to the CHP “assuming this will happen” when I think about what this incident does to this young boy, it leaves a horrible mark on his record at this young age. The CHP says they provide, “Safety, Service and Security” on our highways as there is an overwhelming vast majority are law abiding citizens who need to drive on our roads and this incident seems to have turned into anything but.

On a side note, many people think my father, the long-time CPA, is the author of these letters but they are written by his son, to clarify.