NE- Second Mailing From Police Union Blasts Candidates

Obviously sex offenders are a political tool for elections, why are other crime types not used? Ask your politician....

2-18-2009 Nebraska:

Brown, Vokal Claim Dirty Politics

Omaha’s police union continues to get involved in the upcoming city elections.

For the second time in a week, the union has sent out a mailing dealing with sex offenders.

The mailing, which has the pictures of 15 sex offenders on it, criticizes city council members Jim Vokal and Frank Brown for their votes on how police monitor sex offenders.

Vokal is running for mayor, while Brown is running for re-election to his council seat.

Both candidates said the mailings are a nasty attack on their campaigns.

“This was an ill-conceived, not very well calculated effort for negative attacks against the only mayoral candidate that comes out with a (police) pension plan to rein in benefits,” Vokal said.

Brown agreed with Vokal and said, “The timing is really suspicious. This happened three years ago, now all of a sudden I’m in a campaign and they’re trying to bring this up.”

Police union president Aaron Hanson said the flier is fair game and is an issue that needs to be looked at closely.

“Every single one of these (sex offenders’) faces represents a victim in the past and potentially in the future,” Hanson said.

The flier said the 15 sex offenders are in hiding. But, KETV NewsWatch 7 was able to locate five of them.

Michael Suggs has been in federal custody since October. Benji Temple, Jr., is currently in the Nebraska state prison system. Kenneth Wise and James Monie are in the Douglas County jail.

The fifth man, Jeffrey Ozmun, was arrested Feb. 5, the day the fliers were printed.

John Nimmer, Ozmun’s attorney, said Ozmun had no intention of evading the law.

“Maybe they should have checked each one (sex offender) before they put his name on a flier and mailed it out,” Nimmer said.

But Hanson said they did that. He said all the convicted sex offenders were checked out before the mailing was printed.

Hanson said the mailings are all part of the election process and the union is getting out the voting records of those running for office.

But Vokal and Brown think Omahans expect more.

“People are disgusted that they go to their mailbox and see this kind of negative attack in Omaha,” Vokal said. ..News Source.. by MSNBC