Mayor's judgment in question after events

Recently, various news organizations reported that Mayor Johnson's adult son crashed his truck, at 2:30 a.m., following an evening consisting of "some beers" at the RotaryFest. Apparently, Johnson's son, Craig, jumped a median curb in an Elk Grove apartment complex and heavily damaged three parked vehicles. Craig spoke briefly to a witness, who said he then fled the scene with his front bumper dragging, engine smoking, and license plate laying on the ground at the scene. When Craig arrived home, he parked his truck in a neighbor's driveway, and again failed to contact police.

Mayor Johnson became actively involved when he heard the police speaking to Craig. And, although an officer indicated that he smelled an alcoholic beverage on Craig's breath, a test for impairment was not given. Craig was issued two municipal tickets with a $75.00 bond.

The mayor and his son stated that the truck had braking problems and accelerator issues. I have to wonder how any father, especially an owner of an large local insurance agency, could allow his child to operate an allegedly unsafe vehicle on the streets of our town.

I certainly cannot imagine any person operating a vehicle, involved in a serious late-night multiple car crash, with the odor of alcohol on his breath, not being provided the simplest of impairment tests.

However, recent revelations reported in the Daily Herald cite an example of mayoral influence and political swagger. Reportedly, Mayor Johnson called a mandatory meeting of the police department membership ... and attempted to "intimidate" a pending police union contract negotiation.

The two events are, quite reasonably, intertwined and demonstrate flawed judgment, political gaffes, and costly exposure and risk to taxpayers.

Chris Coffman

Elk Grove Village