Why Publish Moto-Brock's Name?

by Ted S. McGregor Jr. & r & After the Spokesman-Review decided it was best to keep the identity of their computer forensic expert a secret, some may wonder why we arrived at the opposite conclusion and have decided to reveal that we believe Marcus Lawson is the fictional 18-year-old known to Spokane as & quot;Moto-Brock. & quot;





How did we get this information? Several local attorneys and law enforcement officials told us they were convinced Lawson and Moto-Brock are one and the same. Although it appears that his name would have come out eventually, as a part of the discovery that will come with Jim West's promised lawsuit, the few people who know this for certain have been unwilling to reveal who he is. When we called Lawson, he would not confirm our story either. But Lawson was also given a chance to deny that he was Moto-Brock, and he didn't. The Spokesman-Review's attorney Duane Swinton took the same approach. Of course we would have liked absolute confirmation, but as it looked like we would never get it, we decided to tell our readers what we know.





Why is this important for the community to know? Spokane is faced with a very serious decision in this recall election, and in order to vote wisely, knowing the identity of who outed the mayor is a big piece of the puzzle. By maintaining secrecy, the Review has been able to present their expert with an impressive facade of infallibility. The mayor and his lawyers have raised some valid questions about his methods -- questions nobody outside the Review has been able to independently answer. We offered Lawson a chance to answer those questions, but he declined.





We simply think the voters of Spokane should have as many facts as possible before they decide Jim West's future.