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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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Spokane Mayor David Condon needs to work on damaged credibility

Mayor David Condon is moving on.

The Spokane City Council is not moving on.

The findings of Kris Cappel, who investigated the events leading up to the Sept. 22, 2015, resignation of former Spokane police Chief Frank Straub, will do nothing to mend relations between the city’s executive and legislative branches. It may have made them worse.

Last Monday, Condon hired Laura McAloon as interim city attorney after receiving a draft of the Cappel report. In it, Cappel identified Condon and spokesman Brian Coddington as two of the city officials who delayed the release of damaging information about the handling of Straub’s resignation until after last November’s election.

The final report omits their names. McAloon had called Cappel after the draft was circulated in City Hall. Cappel says the decision to make the change was hers alone, based on a reassessment of the “circumstantial evidence” she had relied on in the draft.

That may be true, but it looks bad. Now, Council President Ben Stuckart and Councilwoman Karen Stratton say they will block confirmation of McAloon, who was also Condon’s appointee to a committee that examined the mishandling of Straub’s ouster.

McAloon should be given the chance to explain herself. She has done some excellent legal work for the city, including a successful defense against a challenge to council-approved tax exemptions for seniors and veterans.

The Cappel report itself grimly memorializes a police administration gone bad within months of Straub’s appointment by Condon. Senior staff, some promoted by Straub, sought demotions rather than work with him.

Allegations of abusive behavior against the chief reached a crescendo after a March 31, 2015, meeting in which Straub was reportedly screaming and profane. Among those present was Monique Cotton, who claimed Straub harassed her sexually but, according to Cappel, “demanded that the City not investigate her complaints and said she would not participate in an investigation if one were to be initiated.”

Cappel found no evidence of harassment, but did not interview either Cotton or Straub. Cotton was transferred to a higher-paying city job; the chief ended up on the street. Straub says he was fired, but that claim has been rejected by a federal judge.

Condon has maintained he was silent on Cotton’s complaints out of deference to her privacy. In a statement issued Monday, he acknowledges that was a mistake, denies there was any effort to withhold information prior to the election, and says transparency will be paramount during the remainder of his second term.

“We will build trust back,” Condon says.

He’ll have to get council buy-in on McAloon, as well as his choice for police chief, whoever that may be. For the sake of the city, everybody needs to learn from the mistakes made, and move on.