Unnecessary cops at Hoopfest

In response to (Spokane City Council defers action on new cost-sharing agreement with Hoopfest, June 18): In my opinion, the Hoopfest security budget could safely be cut in half by cutting the number of cops in half.

As it is, they stand around in groups of three or four, evidently to roll out the yellow “Do Not Cross” tape after an incident has occurred. Since these peace officers are making time and half and probably double time on Sunday, I would expect them to at least look busy by continuously walking about; singly to make their police presence known. Actually anyone in uniform could accomplish about the same thing armed with just a radio.

Idea: All our court marshals are armed with a radio so we really don’t need any cops. And, for some reason, we like our officers armed to the teeth with semi-automatic weapons inside a crowd of 100,000 people. I fear “death by cop” more than I do by the few crazy Hoop-daddies out there. Meanwhile, contrary to popular opinion, both the violent crime rate and property crime rate is half what it was in 1993, according to the Pew Research Center.

Leonard Butters

Spokane