Police officer's testimony should not have been published

Editor: Shame on you.

What could possibly motivate you to publish the horrific testimony of the undercover police officer in the Marc Bontkes murder case, as reported in the Sept. 27 Times?

Do we need to ban your newspaper from our children and grandchildren?  You don’t even know if his testimony (let alone the claims of the convicted killer) is true, so why all the specifics?

Perhaps the reporter should picture herself as a family member in this case. Would that be sufficient for her to pause before publishing these unnecessary details?

I am very disappointed that our local newspaper editor has sunk to this level of sensationalism. Roy Thielen was convicted of a very serious crime. The Times is guilty of extending the hurt.

Ron de Haan,

Langley

Editor’s note — A full explanation of The Times’ reasons for publishing the details contained in this story was published online, in response to Facebook comments on the original story. It follows.

Thanks to the Facebook commenters who have put their perspectives here. The Times chose to publish a number of details that emerged in court for the following reasons.

1 - To let our readers know about the sordid, beneath the radar, street-level drug culture in Langley. All of us need to be more fully aware of the effect this culture has on our community. It is significant and troubling, and in its worst manifestations, it takes the lives of young people with a lot of promise and potential, such as Marc Bontkes.

2 - The context of this shooting needs to be remembered. It occurred during an unparalleled time of brutal retaliation among various drug gangs in the Lower Mainland, including a public execution in broad daylight at the Thunderbird Village mall in Walnut Grove. People were e4xtremely concerned about going out into public places. Just before Marc Bontkes' murder, the related killing of Laura Lamoureux took place on a Langley City street. The background and details of both these killings have been sealed due to court-ordered bans, as three people were facing separate trials. We believe it is important to let out readers know this detailed background information, so they can understand how these various killings relate to one another. Thiscommunity belongs to its residents— not to drug gangs.