Dayton Daily News: Strickland gives inmates too much rope

The Dayton Daily News editors write:

So much for the effort by top officials at the Ohio Department of Public Safety and the State Highway Patrol to spare Gov. Ted Strickland embarrassment.

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Even if the cancellation happened exactly the way Director Collins-Taylor and Patrol Superintendent David Dicken insist it did, the procedure was nuts.

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If only for the sake of his neighbors — who are entitled to know that the inmates are under somebody’s watchful eye — Gov. Strickland can’t be so dismissive of the investigation or the criticism of his appointees.

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[Strickland] also needs to take responsibility for his own role in creating a climate that allowed prisoners to stash tobacco in his home and to think they could get by with picking up contraband on the street in broad daylight.

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Finally, there’s the matter of Director Collins-Taylor, who hasn’t been confirmed by the Senate. Inspector General Charles accuses her of lying, hampering his investigation and of putting politics above police work.

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Director Collins-Taylor is undoubtedly going to have a tough time before the Republican-controlled Senate. But when there’s a serious suspicion that she lied under oath, she should face brutal questioning.

(Editorial, Dayton Daily News, 5/3/10)