Brennan made the on-air comments earlier this summer during a discussion about the arrest of Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Gates was charged with disorderly conduct after a confrontation with an officer at his home. The charge was eventually dropped. Brennan said you couldn't necessarily trust the police version of the incident because police aren't always honest.

He then reeled off a string of examples of recent police misconduct in the city of St. Louis to support his argument including officers taking confiscated World Series tickets, to the recent scandal involving three St. Louis officers in its Crime Suppression Unit who admitted stealing money, planting evidence and falsifying affidavits.

Brennan reminded his listeners that the former St. Louis Police Chief Joe Mokwa was forced out of his job as a result of a scandal involving a towing company that involved his daughter and other officers - one of whom has since pled guilty to a felony in the probe.

Brennan, playing the role of provocateur, had plenty of ammunition to support his argument. Still, his supposition that you couldn't trust police was bold even by talk radio standards. Perhaps more interesting is that the backlash never materialized. A few callers disagreed with him but that was it. The remark provoked a few raised eyebrows maybe, but no outrage. No police calls for a boycott of the station, no national controversy, no fiery defense of the men and women in blue.

The lack of outrage says something about the public's perception of law enforcement in today's culture - not just in the St. Louis area but everywhere. We've seen it here. While it may be unjustified, it's still there. We've come a long way from an era when citizens conferred almost a blind trust in law enforcement. There is more antipathy, more indifference and more distrust of police than ever before. Some would argue its part of a larger societal problem of a growing lack of respect for all authority figures.

We're not suggesting a fast rising tide of public opinion against police but rather a gradual if not steady erosion of the public's confidence in law enforcement. Police misconduct fuels those perceptions. Whenever a police officer breaks the law it tarnishes the reputation of all law enforcement officials. As Brennan pointed out, in some cities there is no shortage of police corruption. While the same can be said of other professions, it seems to resonate louder within the ranks of law enforcement.

With very few exceptions we've been fortunate to have honest and dedicated law enforcement officials in Franklin County. They are hard-working public servants who abide by the law and perform a dangerous and an often thankless job with little fanfare or recognition. Although a few have abused their powers, the overwhelming majority are dedicated civic servants.