Letter: Kudos to APD for handling break-in

I’d like to share an experience I and my neighbors had with the Asheville police that makes us fully appreciate the Asheville Police Department.

At about 3:30 a.m. on a recent Saturday morning, a very troubled man broke into our downtown condo building, which has three commercial units and four residential units. He started screaming and smashing things in the lobby, then took the elevator to the second floor, which is residential, continuing to scream and smash things. As my neighbor went to dial 911, the police had already magically arrived. Perhaps they had seen the intruder’s activities in the lobby.

The first officers who arrived could not safely subdue the intruder, so they called in additional officers who arrived promptly.

Once the officers got the intruder out of the building, two of them came back. They had noticed that the intruder had caused the elevator to malfunction, so they returned to make sure it was working. That showed sincere concern about our well-being.

We could not be prouder of how our Asheville police handled the situation. Without them, it would have been even more frightening than it was.

I want to acknowledge that, in the past, some officers have taken unacceptable, hurtful actions that have understandably received a lot of attention. But to focus only on the negative creates an incomplete picture that will not serve as a solid base for effectively moving forward.

In my letter, I’m trying to bring attention to the positive interactions the officers have with the community. By acknowledging both the positive and the negative, we can create a complete picture that can serve as a solid base from which we can move forward as a community.

— Cynthia Barrager
Asheville