Suspect In Washington Police Shootings Killed

Maurice Clemmons, the suspect in the recent Washington police shootings, has been shot and killed while trying to elude arrest.

This was a tragedy that resulted in the deaths of four police officers from the Lakewood, Washington Police Department.  It has been reported that these are the first shooting deaths that have occurred in this police department.

My heart goes out to the family members who are grieving.  The men and women who patrol our streets everyday deserve our gratitude and respect for the work they are doing.

As I have watched TV coverage of this event, I have come to the conclusion that former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee had better not make another run for the Presidency.  The suspect in these shootings had his Arkansas prison sentence commuted by Huckabee, who continues to defend his decision to make the commutation.

In short, this is Huckabee’s “Willie Horton” moment.  Actually, this is even worse than Willie Horton.

Perhaps this is why Mr. Huckabee has stated he will probably not run for President again.  He may still be around on TV, and will be a notable name in Republican politics, but it is clear to me that his White House hopes no longer have any legs.

What is not clear to me, is why this suspect was out on the street to begin with.  I have been reading reports that he had raped a child, and was granted bail, pending a trial.  This happened in our own state of Washington, so we can’t exactly blame Huckabee for this whole situation.

In addition, the suspect was wanted on other charges as well, but still got to be released on bail.

If it was an issue of lacking the funds to keep guys like this guy locked up, then we have to look to our own Governor, Christine Gregoire for answers to that question.  So how about it Governor Gregoire, next time someone rapes a child in the state of Washington, can we hold them in jail until we have a trial?

I am told that in Sunnyside, 100% of the children receive free lunches at school.  Perhaps we can have them pay a penny, or even a nickel, for the lunch?  Would that provide enough funds to hold violent criminals in jail?

Maybe we should rethink the decision to buy expensive hybrid vehicles for state employees?  Some of these vehicles are rarely driven out their motor pools anyway.  Maybe we don’t need so many of them.

We should make public safety a higher priority at both the state and local levels.

The only reason this guy was able to be out of jail, is because of weak politicians in multiple states that allowed him to continue to commit crimes.  Maybe it was a budgetary decision, maybe it was “compassion”, but it should be a question our politicians should answer.