Last month I asked which was the top story: the towing mess involving police chief Mokwa or the Maplewood shootings story. The vote was 5-0 Maplewood over Mokwa. Post-Dispatch editors had judged it the other way, playing Mokwa as the top story. As events played out, do you still feel that Mokwa was the lesser story?
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Loading ...Since my business is in Maplewood, and the police and fire departments here are not that big, I will have to say the killing of Fireman Ryan Hummert and the wounding of Officers Martin and Fite are the bigger of the two stories.
Chief Mokwa’s familial failures and the ease of police officers and their spouses to have access to impounded property will undoubtedly bring about long term changes in how the department works. I hope for the better.
But when someone is shot or dies in the performance of their duty this should probably always be weighted more heavily than malfeasance in office.
Steve Parker is the deputy managing editor for news, and oversees the Post-Dispatch's front page. STLtoday's online news editors are on his newsroom team. Parker has been at the paper since September 1980.
Without question the Mokwa/towing scandal was still the lesser story. That the editors could not (and I guess still can’t) see that is beyond my understanding.