The Herald-Sun, the newspaper located about two miles from the Duke lacrosse field, could not find energy yesterday to write a live editorial for this morning on the ending of the Duke lacrosse case. I guess that might have meant some overtime for the penny pinchers in the Paxton Media home office.

But the Wilmington Star-News managed to crank out an editorial — and a good one — on the issue. It’s titled “Who’s guilty?: DA Nifong“, and here’s a bit of it:

Nifong should have been removed long before he stepped away under pressure. He had demonstrated that he was determined to get a conviction – not because of the evidence, but in spite of it. He had withheld evidence that helped the defense. He had lied to judges.

If the State Bar doesn’t consider those actions grounds for taking his license, what grounds would be?

Oh, if you’re wondering what the lead editorial is in The Herald-Sun today, it’s titled “Too scary to imagine,” and when I saw that headline I was about to think better of my old employer. But, nah. It’s not about the scariness of a rogue prosecutor or “neighborhood activist” demagogues carrying “Castrate them!” signs at protest rallies. It’s about how global warming is a really serious thing. So, the dumb meter ratchets up again for The Herald-Sun.

The editors and the publisher of The Herald-Sun seem bent on proving Jim Cooney right in his devastating assessment of yesterday.

(h/t: Paul Messino)