Terry Bibo’s feature today includes an attempt to compare our new police chief to Chase Ingersoll. Why? Of course, to show why the police shouldn’t post pictures of johns before they’re convicted of the piddlin’ little ol’ misdemeanor of solicitation. A few comments:

First, as the Journal Star’s managing editor notes, shaming johns is how Chase Ingersoll first made headlines 10 years ago. That’s before he was disbarred, which might be both noteworthy and not-coincidental. Now the city appears to be following his lead. Chase approves.

“I find it far more important to keep the sex trade off the streets than I do keeping it off the Police Department’s Web site,” he posted on his own Web site Tuesday, chastising a Journal Star editorial. “Allow me to offer an alternative thought. It is criminality that leads to these dire consequences, not the act of holding criminals accountable.”

Note to Terry: Chase did have that quote on his “website” (it’s actually a “weblog,” or “blog” for short — maybe you’ve heard of them), but he was quoting Chief Settingsgaard’s open letter to, among other people, the Journal Star. Didn’t you even read the chief’s letter? Or are you so closed-minded on this issue that you didn’t even bother? In any case, you didn’t do your homework before wrongly attributing that quote. Poor reporting, Terry.

Moving on, she says later about councilman Gary Sandberg:

Sandberg was never even arrested, much less found guilty of anything, when he was picked up for giving a “known prostitute” a ride in 1993. The rookie officer who gave him a warning for making two right-hand turns without a signal didn’t recognize the councilman, but she did recognize the rider as a convicted hooker. Still, his name was splashed all over the place.

Hmmm… “his name was splashed all over the place.” What does that mean? Billboards? Direct mail letters? OH — you mean the vaunted Journal Star! That’s right, the Journal Star did splash his name and picture all over the place, even though he wasn’t convicted or even charged with anything. Will the hypocrisy never end?

Here the police are doing their jobs, trying to root out crime in Peoria, and the Journal Star, state’s attorney, and some on the city council are talking trash about them and trying to obstruct their efforts. What is wrong with you people? Are you so miserably out of touch with what people in these neighborhoods want and need? Don’t you see the connection between crime and people not wanting to live in the older parts of town?

Bibo concludes her article with these inspiring lines: “Sandberg predicts it [shaming] will blow up in the Police Department’s face. And he’s going to let it. He has his own ideas about deterrents.” Now, first of all, I realize this is the Journal Star saying this, so who knows what Sandberg really said. But assuming this is true, what Sandberg is saying is that he hopes the Peoria Police fail. Did you hear that? One of our council members hopes that the police department’s efforts to curtail prostitution “blows up in their face” — that is, fails miserably and publicly. Isn’t that nice?

And then, “he has his own ideas about deterrents.” What does that mean? He has a better idea for getting rid of prostitution? What is it? Why haven’t we heard it over the last hundred years he’s been on the council?

I’m thoroughly disgusted with the negative attitude that’s been coming from the Journal Star and the city council on this topic. I, unlike Sandberg, et. al., hope this initiative is successful and results in positive changes for Peoria’s neighborhoods. And even if it does fail, I’m still going to thank God for a police chief who’s willing to take risks and try new tactics to clean up Peoria and make it a better place to live.