Re: 12/3/01 - Hartford Courant: Is The Pool Really Empty?
Is The Pool Really Empty?
The Courant should be commended for its commentary on New Haven's failed investigation of the brutal December 1998 slaying of Yale senior Suzanne Jovin [editorial, nov. 23, "How Long Will He Be A Suspect?"]. Three years after the crime, with no evidence to support them, New Haven police refuse to withdraw the statement that James Van de Velde, one of Jovin's instructors, is "among a pool of suspects."
This means that police either fail to recognize or choose to ignore the only definite conclusion one can draw from their three-year investigation: Van de Velde has no connection to the crime. He was and still is the unlikeliest of suspects.
Yale also acquitted itself poorly, quickly opting not to renew Van de Velde's contract. It, too, has yet to show good cause for its shabby treatment of this alumnus, teacher and former Saybrook College dean.
The upshot is that Jovin's killer goes free and Van de Velde is caught struggling to restore his career and reputation. He now works for the Pentagon, continues to cooperate with the investigation and continues to press for police to formally clear him. Friends, colleagues and former students continue to speak out on his behalf.
What's the deal? Will any suspect do until a real suspect comes along? Maybe if we say that there's somebody in the pool, perhaps no one will notice that the pool is empty? Ms. Jovin, her family, Mr. Van de Velde and New Haven deserve better than this.
New Haven residents have a right to expect a vigorous, professional investigation of the tragic killing of Suzanne Jovin. Instead, without benefit of evidence or trial, police are implicating and, thereby punishing, an innocent person rather than admitting their mistake in having called him a suspect. This arrogant, public-be-damned attitude compounds the damage to all concerned.
Police Chief Melvin H. Wearing should be ordered to exonerate James Van de Velde and end a punishment he doesn't deserve.
Barbara Thomas Parkman
Dalton, Penn.
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