Suspect's family is collateral damage

I was disheartened when I turned on the TV and saw the family of the alleged Gilgo Beach killer surrounded by onlookers and the media “Suspect’s family back in house,” News, July 28]. When someone you love has been arrested, your whole world has been turned upside down.

Aside from the shock of learning that her husband might be a serial killer, this innocent woman, Asa Ellerup, and her son and daughter had been removed from their home and needed to shelter elsewhere. What they needed upon returning home was support and caring.

As the founder of Prison Families Alliance, a support group for families impacted by the carceral system, I learned that when someone you love has been arrested, you are stigmatized and ostracized. Families are the collateral damage of our criminal justice system.

— Barbara Allan, Central Islip

I am disgusted by Newsday’s coverage of Rex A. Heuermann’s family’s return home. I see it as unnecessary. Newsday and all other media outlets should leave them alone as there is enough going on in their lives. I’m sure if the tables were turned, no one in the media would like it.

— Jim Burke, East Patchogue

A reader wrote that Newsday is “stuck on the Gilgo Beach story” instead of acknowledging “alleged activities by President Joe Biden’s family” [“Views are varied over investigation of Gilgo slayings,” Letters, July 30]. The difference is huge.

The Gilgo Beach story is a factual telling of the alleged perpetrator and evidence discovered in multiple murders, the solving of which was “cold” for over a decade.

The “alleged activities” of the president’s family are just that — allegations with no proof by some members of Congress who want to make the president look bad. Perhaps those members of Congress are looking to distract from the mountains of evidence that have been found on former President Donald Trump.

— Lyn Mendelsohn, Oceanside

I’m confident that Newsday will cover the story about President Joe Biden’s family if and when there is evidence to support accusations of wrongdoing. So far, the House of Representatives has uncovered nothing.

— Tom Prasso, Bellerose

As a student of urban planning in the late 1970s, I realize there was a lot of controversy about Robert Moses’ mowing down established neighborhoods and communities to make way for his grandiose plans. He was not a figure everyone admired.

But many Long Island parks and roadways we use come from Moses’ master planning. How can we enjoy them when thinking of the callousness Moses displayed toward many local neighborhoods in New York City to achieve his dreams? It is a dilemma that I have grappled with for years.

Now, with the arrest of the alleged Gilgo Beach killer, the images of the disregard that Rex A. Heuermann showed for human life and the sacred land where he allegedly disposed of the bodies seem almost like a slap in Moses’ face [“Suspect’s DNA swab sought,” News, Aug. 3]. Gilgo Beach is immediately adjacent to the eastern beaches of Jones Beach State Park. Both beaches are off the scenic Ocean Parkway.

Unfortunately, Gilgo Beach will always be known as the burial grounds for more than 10 victims. What would Moses think? Would he care? His master plans buried many a vibrant city neighborhood, and he did not seem to care.

— Linda Stuurman, Middle Island

The writer is a former director of the New York City Department of Transportation.

We need to know who appointed judges

As a senior citizen who has been involved in politics for about 60 years, campaigning for several candidates, I believe that the “olden days” when judges were appointed to be impartial have gone [“Don’t tell readers who appointed the judge,” Letters, Aug. 1].

The Republican majority in the Senate refused to even consider the Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland, many months before the 2016 election, but later flip-flopped and allowed then-President Donald Trump to nominate the third of three nominees within weeks of the 2020 election.

Were it not for the appointment of those three justices, several important cases would likely have been decided differently when court precedent was ignored. So to state that it is not important for news providers to keep the public aware of these aberrations is partisan in itself.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who oversees Trump’s classified documents case, already had an earlier decision overruled.

Being properly informed is probably the most important aspect of our democracy, and we need that democracy to continue, not just for ourselves, but for our children and grandchildren.

— June Zeger, East Meadow