Thanks Again, Keyser Police Department and Mineral County Sheriff's Department

I'm very thankful for our fast acting and efficient local law enforcement today.

I was helping out a little this afternoon with the bi-yearly clothing drive put on by Cheri Alt and Helping Hands, getting ready to take my son down for football sign ups. Normal summer day in Keyser, West Virginia.

Then I looked outside and saw a Keyser patrol car going the wrong way down Main Street. I walked out, thinking "that's odd." Then came people running and shouting. A man with a gun was behind the building and he had already shot at an officer.

We probably spent thirty minutes, men, women, and small children locked in the kitchen in the back of the Legion Hall. Oh, also my son Jared was there. On the phone the city police tried to get us information as soon as it became available. Luckily it did not take too long for police to corrall and apprehend the suspect at the Grand Central Business Center. They did their job quickly and no one got hurt. Yet we have to remember that they took their lives in their hands to keep us safe.

Last I heard, and this is unofficial, the guy was walking to the pool to shoot his family. That could be wrong, you know how stories go in a small town. I'm just thankful for the police and deputies today.

Does this change my feelings on gun control? Not at all. Had there been a law abiding citizen among us who was acarrying his own weapon, I'm sure folks would have felt much more secure.

Anyway, the story of the day is our law enforcement. Thank you guys for doing what you do!

Thank You Keyser Police Department!

Thank you very much, Keyser Police Department. Last week a six month investigation came to fruition. Officers rammed their way into a home on lower D Street and found large amounts of cash and different kinds of drugs. They arrested individuals from Keyser, New York City, and elsewhere.

One reason for concern here is that the lower end of D Street is one that it's usually pretty difficult to drive through. It's one of those Meccas in town where young kids congregate and play. Of course these are kids whose parents keep an eagle eye on them regardless of what they are doing. However it has to be disconcerting to all the parents of children in the neighborhood that this was found in their midst.

I cannot fathom the foolishness of the drug dealers, though. Let's say you have drug money to rent or otherwise obtain a home. Why on earth do you put your crackhouse in a place that is within a quarter mile of the residences of several police officers, including the chief herself? Do you think that these people driving home from work or chatting with their neighbors are not going to see or hear something about you?

I'm not going to be overwhelmingly worried. My kid is one of the ones that is down that way every so often. I realize that parents are always keeping an ear to the street, that the kids are good and well behaved, and that the dealers want to keep a very low profile. However I am thankful that Keyser has a police department that is on the ball. Hopefully this bust sends a message that this sort of enterprise will not be tolerated in this town.