Hogging the limelight - just a photo op

Did you notice who took the credit for the marijuana drug bust in the Huntley area?

The Northwest Herald published an unattributed photograph on Page 5C, showing Sheriff Keith Nygren posed behind stacks of wrapped "evidence." Because no Northwest Herald's photographer's name was published with the photo, it most likely was provided by the sheriff's department.

Obviously, the evidence was not in an evidence locker. It was in some kind of meeting room, complete with a large, expensive sign for the Narcotics Division.

How was the chain of custody preserved? Were the packages under direct observation of a designated deputy the entire time? The load appears to be too large to be transported within a building in one movement or on one elevator. Were extra personnel utilized to maintain the chain of custody? Did each person who handled the evidence, such as moving a dolly or stacking the wrapped packages on the floor, have to write a report to state his participation and contact with the evidence?

A photo op, during election season; nothing else!

Why wasn't it just logged in as evidence and stored in a secure area? Is a judge likely to frown on this arrangement for a photo op? Will the defense get an undeserved foothold here?

Why was such a set-up created, if not for the photo? Was Nygren actually in on the raid? Did he orchestra it, or was the coordination between the Feds and the sheriff's department handled by deputies?

The article says that sheriff's "police" (are they police or deputies?) and federal drug agents "tracked" a semi-trailer to a barn outside Huntley. Tracked; as in followed? But later in the article Nygren told the reporter that the drug organization may have had vehicles following the semi-trailer as look-outs.

Shades of the wild, wild west. Don't look-outs ride out in front? And, if the "look-outs" were following the semi-trailer, why didn't the Feds and the deputies scoop them up, too?

The sheriff's department's previous high bust was 300 pounds of processed marijuana - 12 years ago.

Why was Nygren's the only name mentioned in the article? Why not give credit to the deputies who actually did the work?

Things are going to change on December 1, 2010. Those who do the work are those who are going to get recognized. Deputies at the sheriff's department who perform in an exemplary way are going to get the press. They are going to lead the press conferences.

But it's election season, and the Northwest Herald is showing its colors early by giving heavy press to the incumbent sheriff. Not a very subtle way of providing election support, is it?

I wonder if the sheriff must report this type of press coverage and its value in his report to the State Board of Elections.