The lead editorial of the current Yes! Weekly says what the hell, let former Greensboro Deputy Police Chief Randall Brady keep his retirement benefits:

In the department’s zeal to nail Lt. James Hinson, Brady said he would “sacrifice a homicide to get Hinson.” He suppressed exculpatory information about Lt. Hinson and even had a hand in forging a document regarding interdepartmental disciplinary action.

These things do not speak well for Randall Brady, and the city of Greensboro requested that he be declared ineligible for supplemental police benefits. Brady sued the city for these benefits in February and won his case. The city council may fight the ruling.

Nevertheless, it must be taken into account that Brady served with the GPD for 30 years, and his misdeeds must be measured against the years on the job and the pact he made with the city, one in which he followed the letter, if not the spirit, of the agreement.

Randall Brady will never have a street named after him or a statue declared in his honor. But for his 30 years of service, he should not be denied his benefits.

Again, we run into issues of context. I realize that, unfortunately, the police do have the power to negotiate charges against defendents and that it happens more than the public knows. But you have to wonder if Brady was being literal or if he was he making the figurative comment guys often make when they say “I’d give my left (you-know-what) to president of the United States.”

Certainly this whole deal does not speak well for Brady, and I realize that when I defend what we’ve heard him say as “context.” But without knowing the whole story, the public doesn’t really know just what they should tolerate from their law enforcement officers. Speaking off the cuff is one thing; following through is something completely different. Right now, the public’s still lingering in the middle somewhere.

I also noticed something very interesting when flipping through the Yes! Weekly print edition: An advertisement for none other than the Red Rooster, the site of last month’s shooting that killed a Winston-Salem police officer. I guess Yes! Weekly should get all the ad revenue it can before the city shuts the Rooster down.