Late Sheriff Frank Crnkovich faced corruption charges 25 years ago today

Has it been 25 years since the late Sheriff Frank Crnkovich faced trial on corruption charges that changed the pecking order in Shoshone County? Indeed. To the day.

In the U.S. District Court in Moscow, on Oct. 26, 1992, Crnkovich was fighting for his political life. He was accused of taking bribes from gambling and prostitution interests. And obstructing outside law enforcement agencies from fighting corruption.

Crnkovich’s 16-year reign as chief cop of the untamed county began to unravel on June 23, 1991, when the FBI busted dozens of Silver Valley gambling operations.

His political fortunes took another hit when his undersheriff, Dan Schierman, beat him by 111 votes in the Democratic primary six months before his first trial began. Crnkovich fired Schierman after the primary loss. Unabashed Fans of Frank coaxed the embattled sheriff into running as a write-in candidate against Schierman in the November general election. Schierman soundly beat his former boss.

The first trial for Crnkovich ended in a hung jury. A second jury acquitted him in March 1993. By that time, he was finished as a sheriff and power broker.

Separated at birth?

So state Rep. Paul Amador is at Costco on Saturday when a nearby woman looks at him and gasps. Then, the Republican legislator from Coeur d’Alene heard the woman tell her husband, “Oh my gosh, I thought that was (former Green Bay Packers QB) Brett Favre. I almost (bleeped) my pants.” Sez Paul: “Not sure if I should be flattered or concerned that I could be mistaken for a celebrity 13 years my senior.” You can do a lot worse in life than having an NFL Hall of Famer as a doppleganger … After 11 years as a North Idaho resident, Benjamin Bao Truyen Tran, of Coeur d’Alene, has a simple reason why he has decided to hunt this fall: “I may be the only Vietnamese Mormon Ironman in the world, and I would like to add ‘hunter’ to that.” And you say North Idaho isn’t diverse?

Huckleberries

Poet’s Corner: “Jack Frost wrote a note last night/ across our lawn in sparkling white,/ said he would be living here/ until some time in spring next year” – Tom Wobker, The Bard of Sherman Avenue (“He’s Back”) … Jadd Davis, the director/actor/janitor for the Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre, was surprised Monday that autocorrect on his cellphone changed “thanks” to “gynecomastia” (a hormonal imbalance that causes swelling of breasts in males). Responds Jadd: “I know I’ve gained a little weight, but do you have to rub it in quite so hard, phone?” … Which reminds Huckleberries of a short conversation overheard by Bruce Twitchell, of Coeur d’Alene. One man to another: “I got ‘broobs.’ Bro boobs” … On its Facebook page, the Kellogg Police Department explains why there’s no hunting at Galena Ridge Golf Course: “Because it’s in the city limits.” Huckleberries can think of several other reasons why you shouldn’t hunt on golf courses … If a tree falls on your porch and dining room, and only the dogs are home, does it make a sound? Ben and Jennifer Drake, of Coeur d’Alene, suspect that the tree that toppled onto their house during that mid-October windstorm made noise. It certainly caused damage. Sighed Jennifer afterward: “I always wanted a treehouse.”

Parting shot

All three Coeur d’Alene City Council incumbents – Amy Evans, Kiki Miller and Woody McEvers – are running unopposed for re-election Nov. 7. But Councilman Dan English still voted absentee for them this week. It’s in his blood. English served as county clerk for four-plus terms back in the day when a Democrat could get elected to a Kootenai County Courthouse spot. But Dan had another reason for voting this year: Recall elections. Higher turnouts require recall advocates to gather more signatures to place the matter on the ballot. In 2012, Coeur d’Alene’s CAVErs (Citizens Against Virtually Everything) tried to recall then-Mayor Sandi Bloem and three council members for backing the $20 million makeover of McEuen Park. They collected thousands of signatures to force a recall election. But not quite enough.