The Bailey Bailout

Sunday’s editorial criticizes North Myrtle Beach leaders for allowing a culture of insularity to thrive inside city government.

“Lieutenant, have you ever been disciplined for lying?”

Local defense attorneys must certainly already be practicing this question after the North Myrtle Beach’s Department of Public Safety’s ill-considered decision to demote director William Bailey to a lieutenant this week. Imagine sitting on a jury in a trial where the original location of a key piece of evidence – a weapon, perhaps – is disputed. What would your reaction be when you found out the supervisor who signed off on the investigating officer’s report had once lied about the circumstances surrounding the theft of his own gun?

North Myrtle Beach officials, notably City Manager John Smithson, must be well aware of the difficulty they would create for prosecutors by letting Bailey participate in police work. Their only other option would be to ease him into some sort of desk job uninvolved with criminal cases, but that move would smack even more of cronyism. Either way, the city’s obvious desire to keep paying an employee who has so damaged his department’s reputation is troubling.

Bailey’s conduct has repeatedly drawn criticism since his questionable performance in April’s wildfires, offering conflicting statements as to how and when he first joined the city officials’ lackluster response that night. Under mounting scrutiny, his relationships with subordinates and his handling of criminal cases involving politically-connected participants have likewise been questioned.

Add to those concerns, now, the dozens of conversations recorded by Lt. Randy Fisher before his forced resignation immediately after the city elections. Statements like “We’ve had other officers who had their own opinion of how we should have responded to the fire, and they’ve been dealt with accordingly,” from Assistant City Manager Steve Thomas suggest a pervasive culture of insularity and intolerance of dissent in North Myrtle Beach government.

The mayor and city council members have studiously avoided answering any questions about these issues, declining even to express concern over the public safety director’s debunked falsehood that his gun was stolen from a locked glove compartment - though the glove compartments in his truck do not lock. The elected officials’ only response is that North Myrtle Beach’s form council-manager form of government precludes them from involvement in the day-to-day affairs of city departments. In other words, the law says their job is to set policy, and Smithson’s is to execute it.

Perhaps we’ll give them a modicum of credit for following the letter of this law – we wouldn’t necessarily want to see a pack of emails from them directing Smithson on how to reprimand Bailey. North Myrtle Beach residents should expect their council members both to demand accountability from Smithson as to the city’s administration and to express any concerns they might have. The elected officials’ silence thus far suggests they condone it.

We have one suggestion for a policy North Myrtle Beach should quickly consider. The continuing stream of disturbing revelations show that the city clearly needs an infusion of new blood, and thus should mandate that certain department heads – specifically, the newly-vacant Public Safety Director position – be chosen from outside the department. A fresh perspective high in the North Myrtle Beach administrative structure could be just the cure for the city’s continuing governmental ills.

North Myrtle Beach officials, notably City Manager John Smithson, must be well aware of the difficulty they would create for prosecutors by letting Bailey participate in police work. Their only other option would be to ease him into some sort of desk job uninvolved with criminal cases, but that move would smack even more of cronyism. Either way, the city’s obvious desire to keep paying an employee who has so damaged his department’s reputation is troubling.

Bailey’s conduct has repeatedly drawn criticism since his questionable performance in April’s wildfires, offering conflicting statements as to how and when he first joined the city officials’ lackluster response that night. Under mounting scrutiny, his relationships with subordinates and his handling of criminal cases involving politically-connected participants have likewise been questioned.

Add to those concerns, now, the dozens of conversations recorded by Lt. Randy Fisher before his forced resignation immediately after the city elections. Statements like “We’ve had other officers who had their own opinion of how we should have responded to the fire, and they’ve been dealt with accordingly,” from Assistant City Manager Steve Thomas suggest a pervasive culture of insularity and intolerance of dissent in North Myrtle Beach government.

The mayor and city council members have studiously avoided answering any questions about these issues, declining even to express concern over the public safety director’s debunked falsehood that his gun was stolen from a locked glove compartment - though the glove compartments in his truck do not lock. The elected officials’ only response is that North Myrtle Beach’s form council-manager form of government precludes them from involvement in the day-to-day affairs of city departments. In other words, the law says their job is to set policy, and Smithson’s is to execute it.

Perhaps we’ll give them a modicum of credit for following the letter of this law – we wouldn’t necessarily want to see a pack of emails from them directing Smithson on how to reprimand Bailey. North Myrtle Beach residents should expect their council members both to demand accountability from Smithson as to the city’s administration and to express any concerns they might have. The elected officials’ silence thus far suggests they condone it.

We have one suggestion for a policy North Myrtle Beach should quickly consider. The continuing stream of disturbing revelations show that the city clearly needs an infusion of new blood, and thus should mandate that certain department heads – specifically, the newly-vacant Public Safety Director position – be chosen from outside the department. A fresh perspective high in the North Myrtle Beach administrative structure could be just the cure for the city’s continuing governmental ills.