It has to be a nightmare for Joplin Police Chief Kevin Lindsey.
From all indications, including the reports carried today by KOAM, Lindsey would love to open up with the public about the disciplinary measures taken against two officers who took an elementary student out of school in handcuffs following the boy's off-campus altercation with the son of one of the officers.
The Turner Report has noted that Lindsey was open with the public when he was police chief in Madison, Wisc. Unfortunately, he was in for a rude awakening when he took the helm in Joplin.
His bosses in city government have a long record of keeping the truth from the public, whether it be about the discipline meted out to police officers or the golden parachutes provided to fired city officials.
The Joplin Globe has been fighting the battle against this cloak of secrecy for years and appears to have the backing of a large majority of the public. That was evident from the response today to the Globe's weekly call-in show on KDMO.
Chief Lindsey needs to be able to tell the public how he handled the situation so the city can put this behind us. It is not the Joplin Globe or an anti-police faction that is keeping the situation boiling, it is the city officials who think they are the only ones who should be privy to how the taxpayers' money is being spent.