It's sad that it is newsworthy, but the O's lone ranger columnist had the nerve to identify, and blame, the Portland police involved in some of the incidents of violence against the mentally ill that have drawn federal attention. That must horrify his editors, who often seem to want to help the cops obfuscate their brutality.

The recent federal intervention into the lack of accountability for the actions of the city's police has some potential to bring about badly needed change, but only if it is just a first step by the feds. In the end, nothing is going to change unless police are criminally charged. The U.S. attorney can do that, or she can watch as her report is thrown on the pile along with 100 similar documents generated over the last few decades, there to collect dust.