Editorial: Thumbs

To people who go out of their way to help others.

We would like to applaud the people who went out of their way to assist Freeborn County Board of Commissioners Chairman Mike Lee after he was struck by a vehicle Monday in the Walmart parking lot and knocked to the ground.

Lee said there were people who came to his side and offered him assistance.

It’s nice to see people do the right thing and help others when it’s needed.

We’re glad Lee wasn’t hurt worse, and wish him the best.

 

To another reported hit-and-run crash.

Though the circumstances were different, it was disheartening to hear news Tuesday of a second hit-and-run crash in the Albert Lea area in the last few weeks.

Albert Lea police said a 1994 Toyota Corolla was entering Freeborn County Road 46 out of Happy Trails Lane when the driver of the Corolla didn’t see a white pickup heading east on County Road 46.

The two vehicles collided.

The pickup reportedly went partially into the median, stopped, and then continued east on County Road 46.

One woman in the Corolla was transported to the hospital.

Police said the truck that got away was not at fault in the crash, but the truck should have still stopped.

We urge readers to always stop after a crash.

According to Minnesota statute, the driver of any motor vehicle involved in a collision should immediately stop the vehicle at the scene of the crash as close to the scene as possible and investigate what was struck.

If the driver knows or has reason to know that the collision resulted in injury or death to another, the driver must remain at the scene of the crash until the driver provides a set of information at an officer’s request, including name, address, date of birth and registration plate number. The driver must also show a driver’s license or permit if requested.

 

To the Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office allowing public input in naming the department’s new K-9.

It was fun to see the public get involved in choosing the name for the department’s new K-9 this weekend.

A survey asking people to choose one of five names closed at noon Saturday, and the name with the most votes was Stalker. This was named in honor of Corey Goodnature, a chief warrant officer in the U.S. Army who was killed in action June 28, 2005. Goodnature and 15 others in a MH-47 Chinook helicopter were responding to a call of a team of Navy SEALS that had come under intense fire in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan. All of the others in the helicopter also died, along with all but one of the SEALS they had attempted to rescue.

The Sheriff’s Office posted on its Facebook page Saturday that they were seeing the dog for the first time that day and that the K-9 team will soon begin intense training. The team will be fully certified by June.

Other names being considered were Jaysek, a combination of Jason Meyers, a Grand Meadow police officer who died in a car crash while on duty in 1999, and Albert Lea Police Lt. Phil Bartusek, who died of cancer in 2008; Ruger, after the firearms manufacturer; Odin, a god in German and Norse mythology; and Razor.

We look forward to seeing the work of the K-9 in the future.