Washburn Letters

To the Editors of The Crimson:

In your Jan. 13th article on Harvard crew members writing in support of their former associate Mr. Washburn, you imply that coach Harry Parker and his rowers are somehow responsible for the miscarriage of justice in the Washburn case.

That Judge Flannery chose to base his decision on fan mail rather than the criminal facts of the case, is no excuse to conduct a witch-hunt on Washburn supporters. Surely the Crimson is aware that it is common practice to write a judge in support of one's associates in trouble. The judges trying the insider trading cases on Wall Street are deluged with letters describing "pillars of the community," "major benefactors to innumerable worthy cause" etc. They've heard it all before. Such loyal support does not and should never be meant to excuse criminal behavior.

You can be sure that the crew members were as surprised by the judge's decision as the rest of us. To imply that they are responsible for a bad decision is as ludicrous as it is unjust. Joan M. Hutchins '61