George,

I have been meaning to write you about the outcome of the Gordon Fields case.

I think the outcome was as good as can be expected. I think Lloyd Snook, Dave Chapman, and Bob Downer should be highly commended for crafting a settlement that is both just and compassionate. However you aren't going to make everybody happy. There will be those who feel the sentence is too light and if you want to beat up a UVa student all you will get is 30 days in jail.

Well that is not all Mr. Fields is getting. He has a suspended sentence and a conviction on his record. Also because he was the only student involved who was 18 he suffered the full brunt of the intense media coverage. He also has to make financial restitutions to the victims. There are those who will say he was treated too harshly. Well he avoided a felony conviction which is a really bad thing to have on your record. From what I have heard, Mr. Fields is a fine young man. He made a mistake. He will pay for that mistake. He has been through an ordeal but has the opportunity to get on with his life.

One thing did disturb me. In the article on the plea agreement there was a statement by the Rev. Alvin Edwards. He said there will always be racial tension in Charlottesville as long as none of the white students were charged. I have great respect for Rev. Edwards and his service over the years to our community but I wonder if he realizes the consequences of his statement. Is he accusing Dave Chapman of racial bias?

I don't have access to all the facts but I am sure Dave Chapman used the same good judgment in not bringing charges against some whites as he used in not pursuing hate crimes against blacks. Is Rev. Edwards saying that charges should be brought against the whites even if the evidence doesn't justify it because they are white and blacks have been charged? Probably he just meant that some people within the black community will interpret the non charging of whites as racial bias. That may have been his meaning but I know I didn't interpret it that way when I first read it. So what do you do? Charge people unjustifiably to reduce racial tension. I don't think so.

There are extreme elements in both the black and white communities that will see bias in any situation regardless of the outcome. There may be continued racial tension because whites weren't charged but there will also be continued racial tension because of statements such as the Rev. Edwards'. One statement does not undo a lifetime of service to the community but the statement does do a disservice to Mr. Chapman, contibutes to racial tension, and is a disservice to Rev. Edwards himself.

Downing Smith (electronic mail, April 12, 2002)

Editor's Note: One of the six teens who pleaded guilty on Tuesday to being an accessory to a robbery after the fact was white. "The girl is the only Caucasian known to have been charged in the incidents, and her arrest had not been made public until Tuesday" (David Dadurka, The Daily Progress, April 10, 2002).

For more on the subject, see Hate/Bias Crime Series.