The Editorial Board of this paper wants to condemn the entire Maine State Police Department because of court rulings concerning one trooper. What a broad brush, that is completely unfair and just wrong.

In the 1970s, I was a young trooper patrolling the Maine Turnpike. Early one morning I clocked a semi-truck at 95 miles per hour and as I was catching up to it I observed it weaving in and out of traffic while changing lanes. I was a mile behind it when I decided the driver was going to be arrested for driving to endanger. At that point I had no idea if the driver was male, female, Black, white, Catholic or Protestant, I just knew the driver was going to jail. He was polite and compliant.

He pled not guilty and wanted a trial. At that trial, I testified to the circumstances that led to his arrest. His defense attorney only asked me one question, “Trooper, isn’t it a fact that the only reason you arrested my client is because he is Black?”

I told the attorney that when the decision was made to arrest his client, I had no idea who or what he was. The judge found him guilty.

By the flawed and obviously biased opinion of the Editorial Board of this paper, they would classify me as a racist! They need to assess their own bias and stop waving red flags where they do not exist and stop condemning an entire police department. Shame on them.

Gary Phillips
Wells