On the murder in Downtown Lake Worth last weekend.

The response from the community thus far has been very good. Most people are waiting for all the facts to come out and that will happen over time. The justice system is never in a rush.

Thus far the reporting by Elliott Wenzler has been good and we’re fortunate she got this story instead of beat reporter Kevin Thompson. If Thompson got this story think things would be very different with a movie quote and how the gay community was living in a “climate of fear” or some such thing.

Two days in a row now this murder made the banner headline below the masthead on page A1 of The Palm Beach Post. This is selling newspapers. Tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday will be more articles about this, no doubt. Will we learn anything new? Probably not.

We can only hope the facts take priority and no more banner headlines on page A1 directing readers to the “B” section just to sell a few more newspapers. The City of Lake Worth deserves better.

Here’s an excerpt from Wenzler’s latest article:

     The Latin diner, which is across the street from City Hall and is only a few blocks from a sheriff’s office substation, isn’t in an area in which residents would expect a shooting, neighbors said.
     “We walk around downtown all the time and feel safe,” said local Mark Beems.
     After being torn from sleep by the sound of three gunshots and multiple screams, one Lake Worth resident hurried to his window and saw multiple people fleeing the nearby scene.
     “I wouldn’t expect (a shooting) to be right here,” said the resident, who didn’t give his name.
     Lake Worth has long been known as a city open to the LBGTQ community.
     The diner near where Sunday’s fatal shooting occured is about two blocks from Compass Community Center, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender group. A spokesman said they are aware of the incident, but are not commenting on the open investigation at this time.

This was an isolated incident. A young man is dead and family and friends are grieving. That’s the important thing to remember in all this.