Gascon's parting shot

Much to the delight of some and the chagrin of others, soon to be former Mesa Police Chief Gascon is now saying that he was on the verge of being fired before he left to take his new position in San Francisco. This statement is being denied by City Manager Chris Brady and Mayor Scott Smith.

The funny thing is, if you look back on the timeline, Gascon makes his bad move in early April, and announces that he is leaving in mid June. This new mayor and council have been fairly swift and decisive since they took office, why would it take them over two months to fire him if they really wanted to? He makes the bad move, there is a public outcry, the council and city manager react and drop the hammer. If they wanted to, it would have been simple.

This type of revisionist history is Gascon taking a parting shot as he walks out the door. He knows he made a big mistake by taking the special interest money to go to DC, but now that everything worked out in his favor, he is going to try to rationalize his departure a little bit. It's almost like tearing down an ex after you have broken up with them to make you feel better.

Now, we have praised him up and down about the reduction in crime and the stability he has brought to Mesa, but this type of classless swipe as he walks away is unwarranted, and will not be viewed favorably by those who have stuck up for him.