"An Overzealous Attempt To Make Sure That Accurate Information Is Put Out"

Berkeley Police Chief Michael Meehan has come under fire after sending an armed sergeant to Oakland Tribune reporter Doug Oakley's home in the middle of the night to push for changes to a story.

According to the Oakland Tribune, Meehan claimed that Oakley misquoted him in a story. Minutes after reading the article, Meehan ordered Sgt. Mary Kusmiss to visit the reporter's home and request that he correct the article -- at 12:45 a.m.

"At first I thought something really bad was happening or they were coming for me, like I was going to be arrested," said Oakley to Berkeleyside. "It was really intimidating."

It would have been out of line to place a call at 12:45 a.m. It would have been too much to send an officer over before contacting Oakley, even in broad daylight. Though Chief Meehan tries to shrug it off, the reality is that this goes beyond "bad judgment" and zoomed right past inappropriate. The misunderstanding came down to a small correction, an apology issued for one thing and attributed to another. This was not over a scandalous accusation, or a lie told on behalf of the police. That's the part that bothers me most. If it was a career killing spin or insane accusation that could damage public relations, I could see trying to get a quick revision or audience, even though that is still wildly inappropriate and should have been approached delicately if at all.  This was over nothing, which makes me wonder how close the journalist was to something important.

No real harm came from the events, of course. It's still something they will be trying to live down for quite some time.