Why not leave Justin Tucker alone?

Justin Tucker is a great athlete, a fantastic kicker and is a member of the Baltimore Ravens family (“Justin Tucker accusers face legal headwinds, but it’s important they came forward, experts say,” Feb. 8).

I’m from Pittsburgh but I live in Baltimore now and when I see Tucker on the field, I watch him closely from his walk, setup and then the kick — and I always cheer when I see the football sail through the uprights! I am always happy for Tucker. And for heaven’s sake people, who are we to judge anyone anyway?

I happened to be in Wegmans a while back and saw this person in front of me. He looked familiar, I thought, and noticed his family was with him. And, sure enough, it was Tucker. What happened next? We all left him in peace because, after all, he is just a mortal man who deserves privacy.

So, everyone stop judging and just say a prayer for Tucker and his family. He is blessed with talent and can sing, too.

— Carol Anderson, Timonium

Coal power has cost more lives than nuclear

I read with interest The Baltimore Sun’s recent editorial on nuclear power (“Maryland’s leaders warm to nuclear power: Are they wrong?” Feb. 8). I’m sure it will elicit a great deal of anti-nuke response. I would just like to bring up several points.

Nuclear reactor design has changed a lot over the years and continues to improve. New designs are inherently safer than those of the past. But that’s true of almost everything in our lives. For example, the designs for the reactors at the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant are about 55 years old. If you were in a car accident in 1970, the airbags wouldn’t have gone off — because there weren’t any. Is this a good reason to ban automobiles today?

By some estimates, there have been approximately 4,200 deaths attributed to nuclear reactor incidents since 1945 (not counting radiotherapy accidents or Soviet submarine failures). But a study by researchers from George Mason University, the University of Texas and Harvard University found that pollution from coal-fired generating plants was responsible for more than 460,000 deaths between 1999 and 2020.

Meanwhile, in France, 56 reactors provide 72% of that nation’s electricity. They started an ambitious nuclear program in response to the 1970s oil crisis and have been going strong ever since — with no catastrophic incidents. Are the French smarter than us or do they just have better engineers?

— Steve English, Clarksville

Parole agent: State agencies dangerously understaffed

As the president of my union (AFSCME Local 3661) representing hundreds of state employees who work in public safety and community corrections, I strongly disagree with this article “Taxpayer advocate questions Maryland governor adding state jobs with a $3 billion deficit” (Feb. 5).

I have been a parole and probation agent for five years. Every day, my colleagues and I go into our communities wearing badges with a mission to support the rehabilitation of those we supervise and ensure public safety. With sufficient resources, we can identify issues early with those we supervise before they have a chance to re-offend. But that requires manageable caseloads — something my colleagues and I have never experienced after a decade of disinvestment in state services.

Our agencies are critically understaffed and the risks to public servants are tragic and real. Last May, my colleague, Davis Martinez, was the first parole and probation agent in Maryland to be murdered in the line of duty. He was alone — without the equipment, backup, or resources necessary to protect himself.

This “taxpayer advocate” fails to understand how dangerously understaffed state agencies are. You feel the impact of understaffing when you struggle to reach state agencies for help with benefits, customer service questions, licenses and permits. We feel the impact when we read about increasing child abuse and neglect deaths due to understaffing in the state’s child welfare agency. Maryland simply does not have the highway workers, correctional officers, nurses, social workers, parole agents and more that we need to keep our communities safe and healthy.

Understaffing only costs our state more in the long run. Our communities pay a price every time we lose a life and when overtime costs, workers’ compensation claims and waiting times are sky high.

The truth is, we can pay for it all if we have the courage to fix our broken tax system. I applaud the Governor’s efforts to raise funds for a modern and efficient state government, especially by ensuring those who can afford to contribute more — or who are cheating their way out of paying more — do so.

Until then, my coworkers and I will continue to uphold the mission of our agency despite these challenges. That’s what public servants do. And we are proud to serve.

— Rayneika Robinson, Baltimore