WBTV last night finally put flesh on the rumors that had been in circulation for some time. Tom Roussey reported that Maurice Mackey, brother of Mecklenburg County Sheriff hopeful Nick Mackey, shot and killed a police officer in Ohio in 1998.

The Mecklenburg County Commission had been in possession of this information for several weeks, according to several sources. This helps explain the lengths to which the county is committed to keeping the cypher Mackey from assuming control of the jail and courthouse security.

The county commission — all of it — needs to step up next week and vote to appoint Chipp Bailey sheriff. Dare Mackey’s puppet-masters to follow through on threats to sue the county. This has gone on long enough.

Bonus Observation: Charlotte attorney Jim Cooney proved his mettle in the Duke lacrosse rape case. That has extended to Cooney pointing out possible conflicts of interest involving the US Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina in actually investigating violations of law within the Durham Police Department. In sum, Cooney backs down from no one. That Parks Helms reached out to him to help the county in this matter should signal to everyone that Parks is done fooling around as well.

Special Bonus Observation: The Uptown paper of record has gone dark on investigating Mackey. Several weeks ago I supplied evidence to reporters that Dierdre Reid, the chair of Democratic Precinct 219, was not being forthcoming about her support for Mackey. No follow-up. Political reporter Jim Morrill — who remembered that Nick and Nikita Mackey are one and same, thus recovering Mackey’s troubles with CMPD back in 2003 — has inexplicably been dispatched to follow the Breck Girl’s presidential campaign. That is a horrid misuse of scarce reporting resources. Morrill adds exactly nothing to the gaggle following the primary circus.

There is a reason McClatchy set another stock price low yesterday. It owns newspapers actively adverse to news.