Not equal treatment

Dear editor:

I thought that we were supposed to be a nation of laws and everyone is supposed to be treated equally under the law. It doesn’t appear that concept is being practiced in Garland County in the case of the tragic death of Judge Naramore’s young son.

According to my observations of similar incidents that have recently occurred across the nation, persons responsible for the death of a child were charged and/ or incarcerated almost immediately. Not only has there been no apparent legal action, other than the necessary appointment of a special prosecutor, very little information has been released about the case. I am certain that if the identical tragedy had involved someone of less prominence in the community, over two weeks would not have passed without some action being taken. The special prosecutor has had the information for six days.

I am also reasonably certain that the media would have published far more information if this disaster had involved an ordinary citizen.

My thoughts expressed above do not mean that I have no compassion for the Naramore family. I cannot imagine the amount of grief they must be undergoing and I have been praying that God will give them the strength to endure it. I don’t know what punishment that the legal system could impose that would be worse than the guilt, hurt and anguish that the judge must be feeling, and will probably feel for the remainder of his life, but it is also beyond my understanding what circumstances could have occurred that could cause any parent to leave an 18- month- old child unattended anywhere, much less in a hot car, for four hours.

I am sure that I am not the only one who has tried to come up with a rational scenario of just how this could have taken place, but, so far, no justifiable reason has come to my mind. I will continue to pray for the Naramore family and continue to hope that the same justice is applied in this case as would be to anyone else in a similar situation.

Jerry Byram Pearcy