To the editor:

Imagine the following scene:

Members of the Lawrence Police Department are called to a downtown bar where they see a college student lying unconscious and bloody on the ground. A group of his friends are saying, “Those guys did it,” as they point to a van in which four young Native American men are sitting. Would the policemen urge the van to leave to “defuse the situation?” Or would they order the young Native Americans out, check their fists for bloody contusions, check their ID’s, and perhaps book them on charges of suspected assault? Would they ask eyewitnesses present at the scene for statements?

Or imagine the same bleeding, unconscious student but the van holds four young African-American men, surrounded by people who say, “Those guys did it.” Would the van be asked to leave to “defuse the situation?” Would 10 days pass before any of them were questioned?

Some members of the Douglas County American Civil Liberties Union are wondering about these questions.

Mary Davidson,

Lawrence