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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Our View: Apple shouldn’t be alone in expressing outrage

Among this community’s elected leaders, Bob Apple stands alone in the intensity of his protest over questionable conduct by law enforcement officers, plus a forgiving response from prosecutors.

The Spokane City Councilman, a member of the city’s public safety committee, should be leading a chorus, but for some reason, he’s singing solo.

Most recently, he denounced as an unacceptable “double standard” the tolerance extended to former Spokane County sheriff’s Sgt. Pete Bunch. It was Bunch who, off duty at the time, resisted the police officers who had answered a citizen’s call about a hooded prowler near her daughter’s window. A sheriff’s lieutenant wrote in an internal affairs report about the incident that city prosecutor Jim Bledsoe decided not to prosecute Bunch, despite sufficient evidence, because he was a law enforcement officer.

Bledsoe reportedly disputes the account, but the appearance of a cover-up troubles Apple.

“The public is upset, and I’m upset. I want answers, too, and we are not getting them,” Apple said.

Given a string of incidents controversial enough to be recognized by shorthand titles – “Otto Zehm,” “Shonto Pete,” “firehouse sex scandal” – Apple’s outrage is no surprise. But why aren’t others on the City Council or Board of County Commissioners hollering as loudly?

Law enforcement leaders such as Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich and police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick, have declared themselves dedicated to weeding out bad actors, but they need a clear expression of backing from above.

Three years ago, Apple was one of a minority of council members who protested police handling of a 35-year-old firefighter’s sexual encounter with a teenage girl. A few months later, he alone voted against rehiring a police officer previously fired over his use of excessive force.

Nobody suffers more when law enforcement’s image and credibility are tarnished than professional uniformed officers themselves. They have the most to gain when standards are upheld.

The Spokane area’s upstanding law enforcement officers – which is to say, most of them – should appreciate Apple’s actions to restore police credibility. And other local elected officials should join the cause.