To the Editor:
In response to Mr. Ostrow's letter to the editor (The Dartmouth, Aug. 12), there are several items which should be pointed out and clarified. Firstly, when Ostrow mentioned his "recent" appearance before the Lebanon District Court, one imagines he went before the court at a time within the last week or maybe the last month. Hardly, I would dare say, does Dec. 2, 2003 -- Mr. Ostrow's last documented appearance before the court -- qualify as "recent" in my mind.
Be that as it may, the next point that needs clarification is the "young boy, around 12," who allegedly appeared in court for a skateboarding violation. Here, Mr. Ostrow attempts to inflame the reader by making us believe that people as young as 12-years-old are hauled into adult court for skateboard violations. This is certainly not true, as state law would not allow anyone under the age of 16 to appear before a judge in an adult court setting for such a violation.
The next flaw is the middle-aged man who worked for FO&M. The problem here is that the employee in question did not work for FO&M but for a distributor that provides beverages to the College and neighboring businesses. And he wasn't fined even close to the maximum allowable under law -- he could have been subjected to a 1,200 dollar assessment instead of the 250 dollar fine he received.
This brings me to the three young Hanover officers allegedly sitting in the court gallery. Firstly, on Tuesdays -- the day Mr. Ostrow was last documented being in court -- court business is generally filled with arraignments, not trials, and thus the attendance of arresting officers is not required. Even with trials scheduled, it would be a rare occasion when there would be as many three Hanover officers in the court at the same time.
Secondly, this alleged conversation about having greater authority picking up Dartmouth students is somewhat suspect as the law the officers are supposedly referring to hadn't even gone into effect.
It sounds to me as if Mr. Ostrow has picked up bits and pieces of conversation and then filled in whatever fit his agenda. Since he can't seem to get his facts straight, I find his diatribe a little suspect.
