Photos of Burning

A picture is worth a thousand words . . . and how much more?

The car bombing outside my office and the subsequent follow-up in the newspapers has really stunned the nation; however, it’s the picture of the fiery van which has caused me to worry about the question of ethics.

There are two stories which are quite similar:

The first is of John Christy, the man who was handy with his camera on the scene of the car bombing last Friday. He took his 3-by-3-inch Polaroid photograph of the car in flames and sold it to the news media for $4,000.

The second is of Bruce Wolfe, the man who was handy with his camera on the scene of the car bombing last Friday, but who turned his 3-by-3-inch Polaroid photograph of the car in flames over to a sergeant with the San Diego Police Department.

Interestingly, both men are in the construction industry. Bruce Wolfe is vice president of construction for Pacific Shelter Co. Bruce’s office is on the third floor of the corner building at Genesee Avenue and La Jolla Village Drive. The photograph taken from his balcony shows the van engulfed in flames and the other vehicles and people on the site at the time. This picture may be of great help in solving the investigation.

Back to the question . . . what’s a person to do when he has information which may be of use in solving a question of national security, but which may also make for more interesting news coverage?

RENEE V. WALTER

Vice President

Pacific Shelter