Opinion: Almost all cops do their job well. Focus on stopping criminals.

To the editor: Philip Matthew Stinson’s claim that cops kill 1,000 persons a year and almost always escape prosecution is misleading and disingenuous. (“Cops shoot and kill someone about 1,000 times a year. Few are prosecuted. What can be done?” Opinion, Dec. 15)

Yes, there are bad cop shootings. But taking a closer look at each of the roughly 1,000 shootings would lead one to the conclusion that the overwhelming majority are legal, moral and within policy. Throwing out the number 1,000 without further explanation is dishonest.

The real reason there are so many officer-involved shootings is that there are thousands of armed criminals who commit crimes and are a threat to cops and the civilian population. Prosecute the few cops who don’t do their job correctly, but also work on the real problem: putting criminals in jail and eliminating weapons available to them on the street.

Joe Gunn, Burbank

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To the editor: The police are the best resource we have to protect the public from harm, even from other police. We must incentivize an end to the status quo by paying in bonuses to the police a percentage of what is saved in lawsuit payouts by using more cautious and careful policing.

Cynical? Possibly, but how truly American to pay police more not to shoot us.

Will this create problems in the police unions, locker rooms and squad rooms? Probably, but better there than on our streets. The police know who the problem cops are and who will cost them money.

Phil Connor, Alpine, Calif.

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