Red face, white flag and a thin blue line.

On the very same day that local media delighted in snapping 467 look-alike photos of citizens walking the just-now-walkable Big Four Bridge in Jeffersonville, the city of New Albany also made headlines, and like so often, they weren't flattering.

New Albany police chief Knight stepping down, by Grace Schneider (C-J)

New Albany police Chief Sherri Knight, the city’s first woman chief, is stepping down, Mayor Jeff Gahan announced in a brief statement Tuesday afternoon.

Knight has requested reassignment to her former position in the detective division, and a new chief will be named soon, Gahan’s administration said.

Assistant New Albany Police Chief Greg Pennell also requested reassignment Tuesday, according to city spokesman Michael Hall.

You can take a city out of medieval times, but ...

WDRB covered the story here: Top New Albany police officials request reassignment.

Naturally, during the course of crediting itself for breaking the story and promising vengeful wrath to come (between cigarette breaks), Freedom of Speech is jubilant.

As the various police department stories unfold during the coming weeks, it's going to be quite interesting to watch as the Gahan administration attempts to control the flow of information. If the past two and a half years have proven anything, it's that City Hall as currently populated is deeply (and perhaps pathologically) suspicious of transparency.

Of course, sunlight is the single best deterrent to scandal. Note this Fb comment by WDRB's Chris Turner.

That word, "contentious." We may be seeing more it it.

Something contagious?

While unwilling to argue the specific merits of the relationship in question, I'm struck by lawyer Mosley's characterization.

Rift widens between New Albany police chief, Floyd County prosecutor; In letter, New Albany police Chief Sherri Knight changes search warrant process, by Gary Popp (N and T)

... While (David) Mosley, the Jeffersonville attorney, has more than a quarter of a century arguing litigation, he said (NAPD Chief Sherri) Knight’s current stance toward the prosecutor’s office is something he has never witnessed.

“I have never heard of that, a police department telling the prosecutor they are not going to be involved in the investigation until the conclusion,” Mosley said. “I can think of no good reason for that.”

Seems locally, there's a lot of "never heard of that" going around. Does anyone know exactly why?

Three hats withering to one?

Amid the five-days-of-Christmas religious advertisements being featured in the newspaper this week, there was space for another wave of incoming mayor Jeff Gahan's appointments.

Gahan names Knight police chief, among appointments ... Juliot will stay fire chief; more announcements coming next week, by Daniel Suddeath

Sherri Knight will be the next New Albany Police Chief, as her promotion was one of three appointments announced by Mayor-elect Jeff Gahan on Thursday.

Gahan confirmed Matt Juliot will retain his position as New Albany Fire Chief. He also announced that Scott Wood will be promoted to New Albany City Plan Commission Director from his current slot as Assistant Director and Zoning Officer.

Knight will replace Todd Bailey — who was appointed by Mayor Doug England in 2010 — as NAPD chief effective Jan. 1.

Speaking for myself, it's too bad to see Todd Bailey depart; as terms go, "modern" and "police" need not be contradictory. Meanwhile, Harold J. Adams of the C-J takes the story a wee bit further.

Among other appointments announced by Gahan, Scott Wood has been promoted to director for the New Albany City Plan Commission where he has served as assistant director over the past four years. That’s a position that had been held by current deputy mayor Carl Malysz under outgoing mayor Doug England. It was not clear Thursday whether Malysz would have a role in the Gahan administration.

In the city clerk's on-line directory these past four years, Malysz has been listed three times: Once as Deputy Mayor, and twice as Director of Community Development, the latter under both Redevelopment and the Plan Commission. City Hall consistently has pointed out that the deputy mayor/body double position was intended as  "ceremonial," without power and sans pay. The reporter Suddeath explained it in this city council preview from November 18, 2010: England: New Albany City Council should not cut salaries; Mayor says Malysz saves city $20k a year

The deputy mayor’s salary is comprised of about $40,000 in plan commission money, about $40,000 from Economic Development Income Tax proceeds and about $5,000 from redevelopment commission funds.

 ... Earlier this week, Coffey said a deputy mayor should not make more than the mayor. The 2008 ordinance that set the deputy mayor’s salary also raised the mayor’s annual pay by $11,000 to $75,000.

It also established a $43,000 a year salary for the director of city operations, a position that has not been held since John Wilcox stepped down shortly after England took office. The position has not been funded by the council the past two years.

Matt Denison is paid $35,000 a year for his role as Assistant Director of Operations ...

At the city council meeting of November 18, 2010, CM Dan Coffey introduced a largely symbolic resolution to gut both Malysz's and city attorney Shane Gibson's pay packets.

R-10-41 A Resolution To Cap Certain Salaries of Appointed City Officials Coffey and Hiring Freeze ... Mr. Coffey moved for the reading R-10-41, Mr. Price second, the vote did not pass with six no votes and 3 aye votes.

Although NAC covered the meeting, which will be remembered primarily as the culmination of Steve Price's fit of pique against historic preservation (Briscoe Declares for Aunt Bee), I cannot recall who cast the third vote in favor of Coffey's resolution.

All of which points to these questions: With Gahan having stated that there'll be no deputy mayor in his administration, will Wood's elevation have the effect of depriving the soon-to-be-former deputy mayor of a revenue stream? Will the director of city operations be funded, and if so, who will serve? What happens to Denison?

And: Can't Gahan just grab some some more unguarded federal money from neighborhood stabilization and give all of us a few hundred bucks for a Christmas shopping spree at Big Lots?