On November 6, 2007 The News-Times of Danbury, CT ran a story titled "Police: No smoking applies to pot, too." Mr. Pirro's story takes the jocular tone of a story from "News of the Weird", we all get a laugh out of it and marvel that somebody could be so stupid - it's all set up in his first sentence of the article - "Who said smoking pot can make you stupid?" It all sounds funny and absurd, except that Mr. Pirro failed to get the whole story.
It may interest Mr. Pirro and the editors at the News-Times to know that Scott has suffered from a major mental illness most of his life and was diagnosed at age 12. Unfortunately, at the time of the incident, Scott was in the middle of a breakdown and was in fact hospitalized one day later when his breakdown came to its peak.
Not only does the irresponsible printing of this piece have specific ramifications for Scott and his family, but it is a major blow to anyone who suffers from, or cares for someone who suffers from, mental illness.
Scott's story highlights the lack of compassion and understanding for those with a mental illness, the poor state of health care in this country, and ineffectual, costly and detrimental mandatory minimum sentencing, as he faces a two-year jail term and will be unable to present his case to a judge.
It is fortunate that Mr. Pirro, Capt. Myles, and anyone else who has had a laugh at Scott's expense will never understand the pain that mental illness brings - not only to those who suffer with it - but also to the family and friends who care for them as well. They cannot understand until they find themselves with a loved one like Scott.
As of this writing, friends and family have contacted Mr. Pirro numerous times and are still waiting to hear from him so that the other side of the story can be given equal time and coverage. Sadly, this story is no longer contained within the realm of local Danbury news, as it has unfortunately found its way to the Associated Press and is now available globally. It has been broadcast on radio and television. By posting and circulating this message, it is hoped that the insensitivity of this story can be mitigated.
Update: You can view and post comments on the story at the News-Times web stite at:
http://www.topix.net/forum/source/news-times/TPJAO8LT6P4C0DA0H/
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