In his March 15 response to my Jan. 30 letter, Arthur Saginian characterizes both Nicole Good and Alex Pretti as “weekend warriors” (apologies to the brave men and women who serve with honor in the reserves and National Guard for the use of this term), implying that they may have been at least partially responsible for their fates in Minneapolis simply by being present. He further questions Mr. Pretti’s judgement in exercising his Second Amendment rights to legally carry a concealed weapon, saying he was “just begging for trouble.”
First, his term “weekend warriors” should more appropriately apply to someone like Kyle Rittenhouse, who openly carried a loaded AR-15-style rifle to a demonstration in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and used it to kill two men and wound a third — subsequently found not guilty of committing any crime. He was later hailed as a hero by many on the right and was even invited to Mar-a-Lago to meet with President Donald Trump, who referred to him as “really a nice young man.” To further quote Mr. Saginian regarding Mr. Pretti’s action, “What responsible person would do such a thing?”
Second, the fact that Mr. Pretti was legally carrying a concealed weapon did not become an issue until he was forced face-down on the pavement by several agents, at which time one of the agents saw the weapon, removed it and shouted “gun, gun.” It was then that other agents shot Mr. Pretti several times.
For the record, I am very much opposed to the concept of sanctuary cities or states. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as it was originally conceived, serves a valuable service in the enforcement of immigration law. However, in its current deployment by this administration it is operating outside its bounds and is putting the American public at risk, as has been demonstrated numerous times.
Why is it so difficult to understand that most Americans want only two things when it comes to immigration enforcement?
First, we want undocumented felons removed from this country regardless of whether the crimes were committed in this country or some other country. To be effective this will require that state and local law enforcement officials cooperate with federal agencies when these criminals are in their custody. Second, we expect ICE agents to abide by the same standards and procedures all other law enforcement agencies are required to follow.
It really is that simple.
Jack Crawford
Saugus
