The Fred Ferrell sexual harassment case
I try to find some form of humor in all of life’s pratfalls — after all, you can’t have manslaughter without laughter! — but I can’t find anything funny about the Fred Ferrell fiasco.
The most disturbing thing about the Highway Patrol report, other than the bile-inducing visual it creates of an old man’s slobber on a young woman’s cheek, is the fact that some people interviewed for the report obviously lied to the investigators.
As you read the report, you can tell that some of the patronage employees weren’t as smart as they thought they were with their CYA stories. You can picture one of Ferrell’s sycophantic bag handlers in his cubicle plotting a double-jump, not knowing that the lawmen are playing chess, not checkers. Checkmate!
Gov. Matt Blunt did the right thing by firing Ferrell yesterday. Give Team Blunt-circa-2007 credit for cleaning up yet another mess that was left for them by Team Blunt-circa-2006. As a partisan, I hope voters don’t remember the incident well enough to take it out on Republicans next year. As a taxpayer, I hope the incident becomes a case study in departmental dysfunction from which all political appointees can learn.
The full report is here.
Comments to john {at} johncombestblog {dot} com. E-mail rules here.