Darryl Strawberry

Re “It’s Unseemly to Cast Stones at Strawberry,” Column Left, April 20: Excuse me, but at the tender age of 39, I found myself diagnosed with invasive breast cancer, a new mother, in a fairly new marriage and wondering if I would be around to raise my son. And you know what? I was 7 1/2 years clean from alcohol and drugs, and it never crossed my mind to use alcohol or drugs or abuse the prescription drugs I was being given.

I went through a year of hell--chemo, radiation, more chemo, eviction, financial ruin--you name it, my husband and I went through it. But we did it with the support of family, friends and lots of prayers. Robert Scheer is right; Darryl Strawberry isn’t a mass murderer. But I was a better role model in private than he was in public.

LIZ SELLS

Los Angeles

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It’s so refreshing to hear that rare voice of sanity. Scheer’s piece on Strawberry was a gem. Strawberry got arrested for not having sex with a prostitute and for not having much cocaine. When will we start treating drug abuse as a public health problem, instead of a crime?

MIGUEL MUNOZ

Los Angeles