Not in Utah anymore

North Idaho newcomer Amber Facer feels stung that she tried to do something for her new community and created an uproar.

Hayden City Council members are snake-bit, too, after endorsing a “family-friendly” resolution promoted by Facer without understanding the repercussions. Council members didn’t realize until they had passed Facer’s resolution that it was part of a push by a Utah-based organization to impose moral standards on grocery store owners to reduce children’s exposure to racy magazine covers.

Apparently, there’s nothing unconstitutional about the resolution, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho. But it’s unenforceable. The resolution doesn’t define two phrases that would be crucial to an enforcement attempt: “child-appropriate standard” or “wholesome environment.” Even if it had, it’s doubtful that such a community standard would have held up in court.

However, the toothless resolution isn’t a total waste. Hayden council members learned they can look foolish by reacting too quickly to a proposal. Facer discovered that standards embraced in Utah don’t work in libertarian North Idaho. And grocery stores found out that magazine covers with provocative photographs offend some shoppers. A grocer shouldn’t need a city resolution to realize it’s good business to block children from seeing potentially offensive magazines or to provide “family friendly” checkout lines.

Good news, bad news

First, the bad news: When the Transportation Security Administration appointed a lawyer to handle the death penalty phase of terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui’s case, it came up with someone whose ethics were shaky enough to allow an egregious faux pas. Who’s in charge of hiring for TSA?

Carla Martin gave witnesses who hadn’t testified yet a look at transcripts of previous testimony so they’d be better prepared to say what the government needed. Under federal witness rules, that’s a no-no.

Martin, who’s now on administrative leave, is also accused of lying to defense attorneys.

What’s at stake is whether Moussaoui — who pleaded guilty to conspiring with al-Qaida to fly airplanes into U.S. buildings — is executed or goes to prison for the rest of his life.

Now, if the government is going to make a case for the death penalty, its lawyers will have to do so without using tainted evidence that seven witnesses were expected to provide.

And the good news? U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema honored the core values of the American legal system. In a high-visibility, emotion-laden case like this, it would have been popular with many if she had found a way to scold Martin without ruining the government’s trial ammunition. A really, really sharp admonition, maybe.

But no. Brinkema lowered the boom. That’s how a nation of laws remains strong.

Scrambled Egg-zay-vee-er

You’d think Gonzaga fans who have been exasperated with the mispronunciation of the school’s name would be more sensitive to this:

The Bulldogs first-round opponent in the NCAA basketball tournament was “Zay-vee-er.” Not “Egg-zay-vee-er.”