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A matter of character

To the Editor,

I first met Bob Cowden as a teenage boy when my brother-in-law would take me down to the Cove ball field by the tracks more than 50 years ago. We sat ona single section of old bleachers with our backs spitting distance from the road and the noisy trains as they meandered back and forth, and watched Weirton Steel softball teams play each other. One man that stood above the rest was Bob Cowden. He was a big man that exuded a quiet strength. When he came to bat, you had a good chance of seeing the ball fly over the fence. If anyone could do it, he could. He was a man a teenage boy could look up to, so I paid attention to him.

Years later I got to know Bob, because he or his wife, Pat, called me when they had an electrical problem. So, in time, I came to realize why his character as a ball player was so impressive. This gentle giant’s quiet strength was rooted in his deep abiding faith in God, in his family and in his country.

They say an apple does not fall too far from its tree. And knowing the Cowdens, I sincerely doubt Mark, their son, is an exception to that rule.

Police officers deal with the worst in the worst of people’s behavior day-in and day-out, year after year. Over a 26-year career, you have seen in all and have had to deal with it all and it takes its toll.

Three police officers at the scene, as well as the jury who saw a security camera film of the incident, say Mark Cowden is guilty of using excessive force while escorting a belligerant drunk to jail. I don’t dispute their perception. What I question is why a man serving our community for 26 years is facing the possibility of 10 years in prison for man-handling a prisoner who had just tried to beat up the arresting officer. It doesn’t make sense when you consider Wall Street brokerage firms brought this nation financially to its knees by peddling worthless derivatives and an untold number of people lost their homes in the process, and no one went to prison! But take a guy who has devoted his adult life to serving the public as a police officer, and one day he has had his fill of belligerent drunks and flips out and does a number on the guy. He didn’t kill him. He didn’t fracture his skull. He didn’t break any bones. The man received a laceration on his forehead. So let’s give him 10 years!

I am not suggesting Office Cowden should not be held accountable for his actions.

I would suggest, however, Officer Cowden has already paid. Ruining a man’s family financially in this instance for this incident is sufficient retribution. Sending him to prison would be vindictive and unjust.

Blaise Hogan

Weirton

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