Letter to the editor: Mammoth woman supports police

I haven’t been a resident of Mammoth for very long but I have been a resident of Mono County since 1989. Over the last 10 years I’ve been a frequent visitor of Mammoth. I enjoy all that the town has to offer. I’ve often told my friends that one day I will move to Mammoth. It took 8 years and 9 months, but I’m glad to say I’m now a resident. A lot of people have asked that one simple question, “why?” I’ll share the answer with you now.

It’s the smile you receive when you walk in to a business and get your morning coffee. It’s the pleasant greetings you get when you take a walk around the lakes basin. Most importantly it’s the feeling of being home. The feeling of security. I feel safe in Mammoth. That security comes from one place and one place only, the Mammoth Lakes Police Dept.

From the code of ethics…
“As a Law Enforcement Officer, my fundamental duty is to serve mankind; to safeguard lives and property; to protect the innocent against deception, the weak against oppression or intimidation, and the peaceful against violence or disorder; and to respect the Constitutional rights of all men to liberty, equality, and justice.”

That is a bold statement. Every Peace Officer takes that vow from the time they are sworn in, until the day they die. It doesn’t stop at the end of their shift, not on their days off, it’s not a switch that they turn off when they retire. It’s a commitment for life. Whether they die in the line of duty, or of natural causes, it’s a vow they uphold for the rest of their lives. Law Enforcement and the Military are the only two organizations that make that type of commitment.

I’m astonished at the towns budget reduction proposal to the Police Dept. They are working with a skeleton crew as is and you’re demanding more cuts from a department that has already vowed to give their lives. You ask them now to give their jobs, their livelihoods.
If you go through with this huge reduction in man power expect delays in response times to calls for service. Expect crime to increase, expect that feeling of security to quickly diminish.

I’m outraged that more community members haven’t spoken on behalf of the Police Dept. Instead they speak of tourism, the road dept, and wildlife. Who protects the community? Who protects the visitors? Who drives the streets of Mammoth 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? The men and women of Mammoth Lakes Police Dept. Protecting and serving the community. Who do you call when someone is breaking into your home? Tourism? When your business has been vandalized or your child has gone missing, does the road dept come to your rescue?
It’s the Mammoth Lakes Police Dept that you call for help. It’s the one Dept in this town where the lights stay on. It’s the one Dept in this town that shouldn’t be asked to give so much of their budget, because they have already vowed to give their lives.

As a part of this community, I ask the town council to save the Police Dept from any layoffs and harsh budget cuts, because they have vowed to save your lives.

Thank you for your time,

Michelle Anderson

Mammoth Lakes