WILL WISE AND WOLF APOLOGIZE TO THE DEVIES AND TO THE MARLBORO COMMUNITY?

"EGG ON THE FACE" is a graphical euphemism for how Marlboro trustee Tim Wise and Dave Wolf came out of the trial of Kyle Devies and his father and Marlboro Police Chief Ron Devies.

From the beginning the STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT has said that the Wise/Wolf generated investigation and resulting indictment of Kyle and Ron Devies was way over the edge.

The SCPR repeats its criticism of Stark County Sheriff Tim Swanson and Stark County Prosecutor John Ferrero for not putting the breaks on Trustees Wise and Wolf. Anyone who knows the history of the relationship between Wise and Wolf and Chief Devies (or who should have probed into what the relationship was) could figure readily that there was more to this situation than being put out there to law enforcement by Trustee Wise, in particular.

Chief Devies has told The Report that he believes that political factors were the bases on which the sheriff and prosecutor failed to screen out the bringing of criminal charges on what obviously was a communication problem between Kyle Devies and the trustees.

Chief Deputy Rick Perez (with the vast police experience he has - being the retire/rehire person he is) bears a special burden for not having figured out that the computer incident was just that and not something that merited further processing through the criminal justice system. Perhaps he should be calling a press conference and owning up to his rookie-esque way of handling this matter, and apologizing?

Moreover, Swanson and Fererro owe the Devies, Marlboro citizens and Stark Countians public apologies for their failure - in the first place - to opt out of the investigation and prosecution in favor of out-of-county law enforcement officials whenever there is any political sensitivity whatsoever about a matter that comes before them.

It hurts all of Stark County law enforcement when there is a public perception that politics has anything to do with who gets prosecuted and who does not.

For Swanson and Ferrero to disrespect public perception - right or wrong - is unacceptable.

The remedy for Swanson and Ferreo was all so obvious and all so easy to implement.

Bring someone in from outside Stark County the next time a political figure (e.g. Devies out to defeat Trustees Wolf and Wise as well as supporting Swanson's opponent in 2008 [Larry Dordea]) is the subject of a complaint.