David Kolbe has been recently forced to defend his office in light of some highly publicized felony drug cases that were modified after the offenders served considerably less time than they were sentenced to. Consequently, he has denied a more reasonable request by myself to modify a sentence so that a man could receive specialized treatment for a mental illness.
He appears to have more faith in the rehabilitation of drug dealers than the treatment for the mentally ill. I have been communicatng with Mr. Kolbe for several weeks regarding a request to modify the sentence of my brother who is chronically paranoid schizophrenic and not receiving adequate treatment in prison. My brother has served 20 months of a 24-month sentence for drunk driving. He has served more than twice the amount of time Crystal England spent in jail for her 30-year sentence for dealing drugs.
Not only is Mr. Kolbe ignorant of the problems facing the mentally ill in Kosciusko County, but he is unsympathetic toward them as well. He would rather see a sane criminal walking the street than he would see a man get treatment for a severe mental illness. Not only that, he would like to see this mentally ill man be unfairly institutionalized when his illness is treatable. If a mentally ill person finds himself facing Kolbe in the courtroom, they can expect no empathy, understanding or mercy.
His tough stance on crime is taken at the expense of a segment of the population that desperately needs his help to receive treatment that could help them rebuild their lives.
He said, "... if we are really about rehabilitation, we need to look at each case and try to determine if a person has been rehabilitated ..." By ignoring the principle behind his own words, he is failing the citizens of Kosciusko County, the mentally ill and their families.
It's time to break the silence and fight the ignorance and narrow-minded fear surrounding the mentally ill. It takes strength and love to make changes, but it can be done. The people of Kosciusko County should not stand for this sanctioned discrimination of the mentally ill.
If a loved one is suffering from a mental illness, there is no need to face it alone. I strongly encourage anyone dealing with mental illness to seek support and guidance. The Alliance for the Mentally Ill in Fort Wayne has an excellent reputation for education, support and advocacy. Their address is P.O. Box 5624, Fort Wayne, IN 46895-5624, or phone 219-483-1190. They meet every Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Park Center, 909 E. State Blvd., Fort Wayne.
Lisa Pett Dublin, Ohio
Power Outage
Editor, Times-Union:
I live in Winona Lake. Our power went off at 9:30 p.m. Saturday. I called NIPSCO at once and got a computer. It said they had my information. I waited for the power to come on. I called several more times, always getting a computer. It was the hottest day of the year. Try to survive with no air ] not even a fan. At 4 a.m. with no power, I finally talked to a person. She said they withdrew the order because the power was on. I told her it was not. She said they would send someone right over. At 8 a.m. someone was finally sent. It took 15 minutes to fix.
If you're sick of this kind of service, please call 317-232-2701 and file a complaint. Our power was off for five hours a couple of weeks ago also.
Barbara Miller Winona Lake
Distasteful Photo
Editor, Times-Union:
Today is July 10. I have just finished looking at the front section of the Times-Union. I find myself sick with disgust over the photo gracing the front page. The remains of Jason Phifer's moped.
From what I could see at Hoffman Lake, Jason lived on that moped. I'm sure we would all like to remember him tooling around the lake with his leg propped up and helmet on. Instead, I will be forever reminded of that horribly distasteful picture that you chose to print. I see no reason to publish photos of any kind of accident that has claimed a life. You easily could have placed the photo of Jason that was used for the obituary, on the front page. What a nice thing that would have been for his family to see. But that wouldn't sell your paper, would it?
I have wanted to write such a letter for many years. In 1976 the same sort of thing happened in my family. My cousin, Randy Loy, age 9, was run over by a semi while on his bike in Warsaw. And yes, a graphic photo of the accident made it into your paper. I was 15 at the time and I still remember the feeling I had when I saw that picture in the paper. I truly could not believe what I was seeing.
I hope you get more letters of this kind and will take a look at your front page photo policy. I also pray that you or your family never have to experience what the Phifers, Loys and many other hometown families have had to go through. The Times-Union's blatant disregard for families and total lack of respect are almost unforgivable.
Expressions of sympathy would be better received than distasteful photos! At least by this reader.
Jason was called home. The means in which that happened we have no control over. The way in which it is reported, we do!
