Man Mistaken for Suspect Slain

I have been troubled ever since I read your news story about an unarmed man, Marcus Donel, who was shot by a sheriff’s deputy in the driveway of his apartment after having driven up with his stepbrother, Terry Curb (“Man Mistaken for Robbery Suspect Is Slain by Deputy,” Metro, June 1). A $200 robbery had occurred 30 minutes earlier about a block from Mr. Donel’s apartment. Even though the description of the bandit was not of the same race, 13 years younger, 4 inches shorter and 35 pounds lighter, the police evidently thought they had their man. (After all he was the same sex.)

I was further disturbed that after shooting Mr. Donel they took Curb into custody and tried to get him identified by the victim as the robber. I shudder at the inhumanity of making 20-year-old Curb go through this after experiencing the trauma of seeing his brother mistakenly gunned down.

I was moved to tears by the time I read that Mr. Donel was a hard-working man and a devoted family man--the sole support for his common-law wife, his two girls (11 and 10 years) and his stepbrother. Not only was this unfortunate incident a personal tragedy for Mr. Donel, but for those people he loved and who depended on him.

Why did this happen? There will be an investigation by the Sheriff’s Department, but will the truth be found and justice done? Are we just going to hear rationalizations for why the deputies did this?

In the article Sgt. Ernie Roop is quoted as saying, “If he (Mr. Donel) didn’t commit the robbery, he probably shouldn’t have been doing what he was doing.” Why isn’t Sgt. Roop concerned whether the deputies were doing what they were supposed to be doing? Is the Sheriff’s Department actively trying to root out its weak links? Is the Sheriff’s Department using the same standard to detect crime in its own department as it is in the community?

MARGARET WILSON

Ventura