The writer is responding to a Sunday editorial, “Respect law enforcement.”

I believe you can pretty much lump the police into three categories:

1. The officers who truly enjoy the job, helping people and really believe they are making a difference in a positive way. I believe most officers are in this category, but by no means 99 percent.

2. The officer that’s had a bad day and now you are going to have a bad day because you have now come across their radar at the worst time.

3. The officer that was bullied in school or was the bully and now some idiot has decided to give this person a badge, gun and the authority to treat citizens any way they see fit.

Unfortunately we continue to see more and more reports on the news of individuals running into situations with officers in category 2 and especially 3. You are a fool today if you do not record every interaction you have with an officer.

If you think a simple traffic stop is going be just that, you may find yourself being arrested for something you didn’t do and have no way to prove it. Even when treat officers with respect and obey their commands, it can still go the wrong way when you encounter an officer in category 2 or 3.

So be safe out there, obey the law and keep your phone or dash cam handy.

— William Maynard

Salisbury