SLOOOOWLY THE WHEEL BEGINS TO TURN

Delaware Representative John Atkins, the legislator stopped for drunken driving in Ocean City, in October, has reportedly asked the state ethics board to determine if he violated house ethical standards when he flashed his legislative ID to the cops who stopped him. It's a step in the right direction toward resolving the controversies attending the stop. ... Now, let's see how the bosses in Ocean City handle their end of the stick.
Of course, we'd like to say we have confidence the city will also refer the matter to their ethics commission, but two things prevent that. First, they haven't done so, and secondly I can't recall a time when the commission has ever found a violation. But that could be because the members are all friends of the mayor and/or city councilmen, collectively or individually. That's not to suggest that the commission members are crooked, only that their thinking could be colored by their friendships.
In the end, however, it may not matter because the city seems committed to ride out the controversy instead speaking to the elephant in the room.
As I write this, the Daily Crime is moving a story saying the city has the full support of MADD, that they are convinced the officers acted appropriately... So I guess the officers' promise they would not arrest Atkins, even before any field sobriety tests were administered, is appropriate enough for those who pretend to want drunken driving dealt with harshly. But I doubt it is for anyone who has been victimized by a drunk driver, or who could be a victim of a drunken driver. ... I mean, if Atkins was not given special consideration, then that means Ocean City police regularly let drivers go free who demonstrate they have consumed nearly twice the amount of alcohol allowed by law. And that, in turn, means they're not enforcing the law equally and fairly ... doesn't it?