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Man shot by deputy has been punished enough

To the Editor:

This is an appeal to the District Attorney’s office to drop charges against Christopher David Dalgarn.

No court could punish Dalgarn any worse that the Grand County Sheriff’s Department already has (Dalgarn is mostly paralyzed from the neck down).



There are many troubling and unanswered questions to this senseless and unnecessary tragedy. Why hasn’t the racial aspect of a black deputy shooting an unarmed white suspect with a history of mental illness been addressed? Has Deputy Rooks been given a psychological evaluation?

What about the last jurisdiction Rooks served in? Do they miss him or were they glad to see him go?



Deputy Rooks stated that Dalgarn attacked him and attempted to take his gun. Dalgarn is very small in stature and it’s hard to believe that Rooks had much trouble maintaining control of his gun. In fact, he maintained enough control that he was able to shoot Dalgarn four times.

Has the DA talked to others in the county who have had Rooks visit their residences on disturbance calls? I know of at least one that was dissatisfied with his lack of professionalism. This is not to say that Rooks is a rogue, corrupt or incompetent deputy. But if he is, he wouldn’t be the first that Sheriff Johnson has had in his department

Both the Granby and Winter Park police departments have equipped their officers with Tasers since 2005. There is no excuse in this day and age that Sheriff Johnson didn’t have his deputy trained and armed with a Taser stun gun. If he had, Dalgarn would be walking still today.

Glenn Bakken

Granby


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