MauryTHINKS

I am writing this letter to express my appreciation to The Daily Herald for investigating and writing the article: “State Trooper alleges race discrimination” (June 29).

I have lived in this county long enough to know that the majority of its citizens are not proud of the racial confrontations of the past and would like to leave the past in the past. Having said that, let’s switch places. You are me.

In 1991, two state troopers were assigned to the Lawrenceburg Seventh District at the same time. One was white and assigned to Perry County and the other was black and assigned to Maury County. You were the only black state trooper in the entire district. You weren’t issued a ticket book, and you had to ride with the other troopers for three months before you were issued a ticket book and allowed to patrol on your own. The other trooper was issued a ticket book and only had to ride with the other troopers for one month before being released to patrol on his own.

Two weeks after being on your own, you were told that you had to go to Nashville with your captain. The only time a trooper had to go to Nashville with their captain was when that trooper was getting promoted or fired. You asked your sergeant why you had to go to Nashville and he instructed you to ask your lieutenant. You asked your lieutenant and he told you to ask your sergeant. Your instinct warns you not to drop the soap — something bad was about to happen.

With no answer, two weeks later you were in Nashville with your captain. You notice that you weren’t alone. There were other troopers there with their captains. You were brought there to be terminated for not producing activity, meaning, writing tickets. As fate would have it, their plan backfired. You are still here. Now, many years later, you ask for permission to be a candidate in the 2010 sheriff race’s, and are told that you have to leave town and that there was a policy in place that prevents employees of the Department of Safety from working in the county of which the election is taking place. How would you feel if you were me?

I wonder what would be said and done if all elected officials were told that they had to leave town if they planned to run for re-election? What happened to justice? What happened to the U.S. Constitution? What happened to those who speak of Christianity? Have they forgotten in 2006 I was given permission to be a candidate in the Fifth District County Commission race and there was no policy then? Have they forgotten a white trooper was given permission to be a candidate in the mayor race in Lawrenceburg, right where the headquarters is located? He won, became the mayor and retained his trooper status at the same time — in the county that he lived and worked. Have they forgotten about all the other troopers who became a sheriff?

Luis Sweeney,

Columbia