Three rights still wrong

At warp speed, Coeur d’Alene police acted to clear Lake City High football coach Van Troxel of wrongdoing after his arrest Saturday morning on DUI charges. Sentiment was running in Troxel’s favor after a CPD Blue spotted him with a carload of young adults on Sherman Avenue. More importantly, the breath and urine tests were on Troxel’s side, too. In both cases, the results came back 0.00. So what gives? This might be one of those cases where three rights make a wrong. Troxel was doing his parental duty to grownup kids/friends when he responded to a call at 2 o’clock to pick them up because they were too sauced to drive. The twentysomethings were correct in calling. And Officer Andy Sterling and another badge were right in making the stop after spotting six adults packed into a compact, with four in the back seat. In Washington, Troxel woulda been cited for a seat belt violation, if nothing else. Troxel didn’t handle the field sobriety test well. But few sleepy fiftysomethings would have either. So what have we learned from this? Cops should be careful when a DUI suspect blows a 0.00. Troxel’s character is as sterling as advertised. And it doesn’t hurt to be coach of the state high school football champs, if you want quick resolution to a suspect DUI charge.

Meanwhile, in jail

Kendra Goodrick, the ex-meth addict from Hayden gone straight, got the type of good news/bad news thing that makes you wonder about the quick official response in the Troxel case. The good news is that she received credit for the 18 months she spent on probation as a result of a judicial snafu and now meets minimum requirements for parole. But she’ll have to wait four months until the state probation/parole board can hear her case. No friends in high places for her … Troxel, by the way, deserves props for tackling his charges head-on with the media, rather than hiding behind “no comments” as most high-profile figures do. Then, he was innocent (so he had an advantage) … French Fries (or “It hasn’t been a good year and a half for local cops”): 1. Van Troxel, 2. Josh Levy, 3. Otto Zehm, 4. Fourth of July/Riverfront Park protesters, and 5. Trent Yohe.

Trib: Nix Boyington Field

Quotable Quote: “Veterans argue that naming the (Coeur d’Alene) airport after Boyington would make history relevant for young people. Poppycock. Pappy Boyington Field would just be one more thing named after a person no one remembers. A statue would be better. Boyington is a noteworthy Idaho son. A statue would be nice. Those who feel passionately about it should find a way to build one – themselves.” – Tom Henderson/Lewiston Tribune … This edition of Hot Potatoes was brought to you by the No. 250. Or the number of employees that Cabela plans to hire to service its new Post Falls store, starting at $9 an hour and, for the 30-40 percent who will have full-time positions, bennies including a 401(k) plan. Or no one will shed a tear if Idaho’s minimum-wage jobs go the way of the dodo, except a clueless Repub legislator or two.