Botched raid, broken trust No no-knock warrants

Regarding “HPD Officers Lied” (Editorial, Sunday): The Pecan Park shootout jolted me back to several years ago when the Harris County Sheriff ’s Department appeared at my home on what had been a serene Saturday morning. I opened my front door to six (yes, six) deputies, four with hands on their holstered weapons, the other two holding walkie-talkies, all wearing bulletproof vests. One of them asked, “Mr. (name redacted)?” Fortunately for me, my heart had not yet exploded, and I was able to respond, “No, he hasn’t lived here for three years.”

Even more fortunately for me, they had knocked. Twice. Once on my front door and a second time on the window beside. And when they saw a man in his late 60s in his pajamas and bathrobe, they knew they had nothing to fear from the occupant of the house, a house where they had expected trouble. They apologized and walked away, one saying clearly to the group, “Wonder who did the research on this one.”

Mistakes can be made, even by the brave men and women who risk their lives for the protection of our community. But the tragic debacle in Pecan Park reveals a stark reality. Bashing in through a citizen’s front door without warning is violence, and that violence invites more violence. In my case, someone made a mistake. Pecan Park appears to be the result of one or two officers’ lies. Either way, using a no-knock warrant, whether from a lie or a mistake, can lead to someone dying. The homeowner, me, would not have known the difference.

No-knock warrants are useless, dangerous, and they should be tossed out of the law-enforcement toolbox. Jerry Wilt, Houston