MIKE Bentley's description (Saturday Soundoff, July 30) of the killing of Jean Charles de Menezes as a "public service" is outrageous.

No hard evidence has so far been produced to suggest that Mr Menezes had committed any crime, let alone one which justified being shot dead, but Mr Bentley hasn't let anything as inconvenient as a fact get in the way of a good rant.

His article demonstrates an extraordinary attachment to the notion that if you repeat a half-truth or insinuation often enough it will become accepted as fact.

He re-hashes the police allegation that Mr Menezes was in Britain illegally, even though foreign secretary Jack Straw has repeatedly said he doesn't believe this to be the case.

He says Mr Menezes was wearing a heavy coat in warm weather. I'm not sure when fashion mistakes became a capital offence, but several witnesses directly contradict the police version, saying he wore a fleece or a denim jacket.

He doesn't question why, given that his "foreign" appearance proved Mr Menezes might be a suicide bomber intent on targeting public transport, the police didn't prevent him from making a three-mile bus journey.

He presents as fact the police assertion that Mr Menezes vaulted the station ticket barrier when challenged by plain-clothes policemen, even though witnesses say he had passed through the ticket gate using a ticket before the police began chasing him.

Mr Bentley worries that the policeman who pumped eight bullets into Mr Menezes will be "crucified". He can rest easy; the BBC reported on Wednesday that the officer in question is away on a family holiday, paid for by Scotland Yard.

Frank Ormston,

Waverley Street, York.

Updated: 09:42 Tuesday, August 02, 2005